Asian Games: India cruise into the final after beating Bangladesh

India thump Bangladesh in the first semi-final of the men’s cricket event at the Asian Games 2022 in Hangzhou, China. After beating Bangladesh, the Indian team will face the winner of the second semi-final match-Afghanistan in the gold medal match on Saturday, October 7, at the same venue. This thumping win against Bangladesh will surely give the young Indian side a lot of confidence. The Indian team now look to bag the gold medal in the finals.

Tilak Varma, who made his international debut earlier this year during India’s tour of the Caribbean, scored an excellent half-century during India’s chase of a paltry target of 97 runs. After reaching the individual milestone, the talented youngster lifted his shirt to show his parents’ tattoos.

India’s victory over Bangladesh in the SF

Earlier in the day, India won the toss and opted to field first. Bangladeshi batters struggled to come to terms with the sluggish nature of the pitch at the Pingfeng Campus Cricket Field. They managed to score only 96 runs in their 20 overs, for the loss of nine wickets. The Indian management should be applauded for reading the conditions well and bringing spin-bowling all-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed into the playing XI, in place of Avesh Khan. The 16 overs of spin bowled at Bangladesh went for just 71 runs and yielded eight wickets.

In reply, the ‘Men in Blue’ were jolted early as Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed in the first over itself. However, Tilak joined forces with skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad. They formed a belligerent 97-run partnership to take India home, with nine wickets and 64 balls to spare. Tilak remained unbeaten on 55 off 26 balls, hitting two fours and six sixes. Ruturaj, on the other hand, finished on 40* off 26 balls and his knock comprised four fours and three sixes.