Can struggling India avoid 'Banglawash'?

MIRPUR (Dhaka): Caught between a possible 'Banglawash' and a washout, MS Dhoni must find a way to avoid both and lead Team India to a face saving victory in the third and final ODI at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium here on Wednesday. Outplayed by the hosts in first two games, resulting in a series loss, India could very well meet the same fate as Pakistan, who had ended up being 'Banglawashed' 3-0 in April.It will be interesting to see how Dhoni and his team approach the inconsequential last match on Wednesday.
Even a crushing victory will not be enough for India to wash away the stigma of a first-ever series loss to Bangladesh, who are bristling with new-found confidence.
Dhoni, who caused a stir at the end of the second ODI by putting the captaincy issue in the selectors' domain, remained true to his style and did not show up at the match-eve press conference. So there was no official update from the Indian side regarding the pitch or team composition.
Dhoni, who had similarly skipped the pre-match media interaction before the second ODI, ended up making three changes to the side that had played the first match. Having tested 14 of the 15 players in the squad, Dhoni may also hand Stuart Binny a game, particularly if overhead conditions remain cloudy on match day. Left-arm spinner Axar Patel, who is fast discovering that international cricket is a different cup of tea to the IPL, may be the man to sit out.
There is no way back for Ajinkya Rahane as his skipper feels that he struggles to rotate strike when batting lower down, especially on subcontinent pitches which lack pace. Rahane, who took the criticism on his chin, was the only man to have opted for optional nets on Monday while others remained cooped up in their hotel rooms, trying to live down the twin blows dealt by Bangladesh.
In simple terms, India need their big guns to fire. The only time Bangladesh looked the second-best team on the park on Sunday was during the second-wicket partnership between Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan.
The onus will, therefore, be on the top-five - including India's new No. 4 (Dhoni) - to put enough runs on the board so that the bowlers can test Bangladesh's array of attractive strokeplayers, who have batted fearlessly till now. To do that Indian batsmen will have to find a way to counter Mustafizur Rahaman's deadly cutters, which have accounted for 11 victims in two matches.
With Dhoni himself admitting that there is a zing to even Mustafizur's slower ones, his batsmen will need to make technical adjustments to counter the threat posed by the left-arm pacer. Under normal circumstances, Bangladesh would have perhaps rung in the changes to give the likes of Mominul Haque, Arafat Sunny and Rony Talukdar a game, but with the mouth-watering prospect of drubbing India 3-0 and a settled lineup delivering two wins, don't expect too many changes in personnel.
However, with the selectors adding leg-spinner Jubair Hossain to the Bangla squad, he may play in place of Taskin Ahmed or Rubel Hossain.
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