The second match in Group A of the Asia Cup takes place on Tuesday when India take on Hong Kong in a battle of the giants and the minnows in a hot and steamy Dubai. This is India’s first match of the tournament while Hong Kong have played and lost to Pakistan.
India go into this match knowing that a win here will see them into the next phase but if they lose they will have their big match with Pakistan on Wednesday as a second chance. Hong Kong have to win and hope.
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India
It has only been a week since India were finishing their Test series against England so they will have to adjust the formats quite quickly. You would think they would have a fairly comfortable opening to the tournament and if they don’t underestimate their opponents and take things seriously then that is how I expect everything to play out.
India know that if they win this match they will be through so they can approach the Pakistan match however they wish to so they will not be without motivation here. We know India will bat well in these conditions but this is a chance for their bowlers to put a marker down and make a statement that makes everyone else in the competition stand up.
Hong Kong
We thought heading into their opening match that there was a danger that Hong Kong would be out of their depth in this tournament and that was how it played out against Pakistan. To be fair to Hong Kong they gave it their all in a battle to be competitive but when the push came to shove there was a clear gulf in class and that may be apparent here too.
I would imagine in the initial stages being competitive will be the first aim of Hong Kong. If they can put up more runs than they did on Sunday and take a couple of extra scalps with them then they might be the best they can ask for. The other thing they need to do is learn from this game and the Pakistan one when heading back to their true level.
Team News
It will be interesting to see if India are at full strength for this match. They play Pakistan the following day so at the very least you would expect bowlers to be rested, especially those who had a workload in England last week. That could mean Khaleel Ahmed makes his debut.
Hong Kong were given a good going over by Pakistan but considering they hadn’t changed their side in four matches it might be that they don’t change anything here, unless they want to give the rest of their squad experience of this level.
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Betting
These matches are always tough to bet on and then when you factor in the potential for India to rest and rotate a few players this particular one is even more difficult. Most of the markets would be hugely skewed by who bats first so that is what makes it tough. There is one I like though.
Rohit Sharma will want a good start to the tournament on a personal level as it will increase his impact and influence as captain in the absence of Virat Kohli and he should have an ideal chance to get that. He has a performance line of 46.5 runs which I think he can cover. He is more than good enough to fill his boots with the bat if India bat first but even if they don’t he will open which helps. I would imagine India will bowl to aggressive fields in this match so Sharma should be around the bat for catches. Any he can snaffle will boost his total but I’ve got to think he covers this either way.
Tips
Back R.Sharma’s Performance – Over 46.5pts for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
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