United News of Bangladesh

Former India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has stirred debate in the cricketing world by questioning the very competitiveness of the Asia Cup. Arguing that India face little challenge within the continent, he proposed bringing in African teams and even rebranding the tournament as an “Afro-Asia Cup” to rekindle excitement among fans. Speaking on his YouTube channel ahead of India’s Asia Cup 2025 opener against the UAE, Ashwin did not mince words about what he sees as the event’s diminishing charm. According to him, there is hardly a team in Asia capable of beating India. He said. “How are these teams going to even compete?” India’s dominance is undeniable: they have lifted the trophy eight times, including three of the last four editions. Ashwin himself admitted that for the sake of competition, he would prefer to see another champion emerge. “In a way, I really hope someone else wins the tournament. Because only then will there be a contest in Asia,” he remarked. Even Afghanistan’s emphatic victory over Hong Kong in Tuesday’s curtain-raiser failed to impress him. While acknowledging Afghanistan’s bowlers as potential threats, he dismissed their batting depth: “Even against the so-called threat of the Afghanistan bowlers, if India bat well and score 170+, who will Afghanistan chase this down with? It’s nearly impossible.” Bangladesh fared even worse in his assessment. Once a team known for spirited performances, they no longer merited serious mention in Ashwin’s eyes. “We’ve not even spoken about Bangladesh,” he said, “Because there is nothing to talk about with them.” Bangladesh squad leave for Asia Cup, batter Jaker dismisses criticism The statistics back his argument. India enter the tournament riding the momentum of 17 wins in their last 20 T20Is since clinching the 2024 T20 World Cup. Armed with a deep batting lineup and spinners like Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy, Ashwin believes the team is virtually untouchable. “None of these teams pick Kuldeep or Varun. And we’ve not even spoken about India’s powerful batting line-up, which has match-winners galore.” For Ashwin, the solution lies in broadening the tournament’s horizons. “They can almost include a South Africa and make it an Afro-Asia Cup to make the tournament competitive.” he suggested. He even floated the idea of fielding an India A side to create at least some semblance of a contest. Wrapping up his assessment of India’s rivals, Ashwin noted that the only realistic path to victory against India is to limit them to a modest total and then hope to chase it down. Otherwise, even the inherently thrilling format of T20 could turn into a one-sided affair in this Asia Cup.

India won the second T20I match by 7 wickets in Dharamsala on Saturday (February 26), clinching the series with one game left. India hope to complete a clean sweep over Sri Lanka in the last match on Sunday. The third match will be held at the same stadium and will begin at 7.30 p.m. (Bangladesh Standard Time). On the other hand, Sri Lanka will try to avoid a whitewash in the final match of the series. The third T20I match preview of IND vs SL T20I Series 2022 is discussed in this article. India vs Sri Lanka 2022: Third T20I Match Preview Sri Lanka failed to put up a fight in the first two matches of the series. After two consecutive thrashing victories, Indian T20 skipper Rohit Sharma expects his team to be even more merciless against Sri Lanka in the third encounter. On the other side, the Sri Lankan team will try to reclaim some respect by winning the final match of the IND vs SL T20I series 2022.  India India's top order and middle order are in peak form. Their bowling unit has been outstanding in the series. Captain Rohit Sharma and the team management have no major issues to deal with in this series as everything is going smooth at the moment for the Indian side. Therefore, changes in the playing XI may be made in order to test the skills of other players. It would be interesting to see whether India stick with the same lineup that won the second T20 or makes some changes. However, one thing is certain: India will be looking to whitewash Sri Lanka in order to demonstrate their true ability in the T20 format of cricket. Read:BAN vs AFG Series 2022: Bangladesh Eye Clean Sweep against Afghanistan in Final ODI Top Two Performers of India in 2022 IND vs SL T20I Series Shreyas Iyer (Batting) - Inn: 2 | Runs: 131 | HS: 74* | SR: 181.94 | 50s: 2 Bhuvneshwar Kumar (Bowling) - Inn: 2 | Wickets: 3 | BBI: 2/9 | Econ: 7.50  Predicted Playing XI Top Order: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Shreyas Iyer, Middle-Orders: Sanju Samson, Ravindra Jadeja, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Harshal Patel, Lower-Order: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal. Read:ICC WC Super League Points Table: Bangladesh Dethrone England after Series Win over Afghanistan Sri Lanka While some Sri Lankan players have played well in the series, the team as a whole has lacked tenacity. Therefore, Sri Lanka lost the first two games of the series. The Sri Lankan batters fared much better in the second T20I, and they must maintain this level of performance in the next encounter. It was Sri Lanka's bowling that let them down in the first two matches. The bowlers must perform well, and Captain Dasun Shanaka will be looking for timely breakthroughs from his bowlers in the third match. Sri Lanka has a chance in the match if their bowlers can put pressure on the Indian batting line by scooping up wickets. The Sri Lankan team may make some important changes to their lineup for the third T20I encounter. Top Two Performers of Sri Lanka in 2022 SL vs IND T20I Series Pathum Nissanka (Batting) - Inn: 2 | Runs: 75 | HS: 75 | SR: 138.88 | 50s: 1 Lahiru Kumara (Bowling) - Inn: 2 | Wickets: 3 | BBI: 2/31 | Econ: 10.57 Read ICC WC Super League Points Table: Bangladesh Dethrone England after Series Win over Afghanistan Predicted Playing XI         Top Order: Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Charith Asalanka, Middle Orders: Danushka Gunathilaka, Dinesh Chandimal (wicket-keeper), Dasun Shanaka (Captain), Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Lower Order: Praveen Jayawickrama, Binura Fernando, Lahiru Kumara. Weather Forecast and Pitch Report According to the latest weather report, temperatures in Dharamsala will be cool on Sunday evening, with humidity in the 30s. However, there is no rain in the forecast in that part of the region on Sunday. The pitch was ideal for the batters in the second match and it would most likely be the same in the third match. Therefore, the final match of the series is predicted to be a high-scoring affair. Read:Hunting small targets helps me do well: Liton Bottom Line The Indian team will start as favorites in the third Twenty20 encounter of the series, given that Sri Lanka's performance against the hosts has been underwhelming. If Sri Lanka want to beat India, they will have a hurdle to overcome in the third match. The management of the Sri Lankan side must build confidence in their players that they can beat India in the final match of the IND vs SL T20I series in 2022.

Five India players are in precautionary isolation as India’s cricket board investigates a potential breach of biosecurity protocols ahead of the start of the third test on Thursday against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground.