India in summit clash with Pak, June 18

Mangalore Today News Network

Birmingham June 16, 2017: Rohit Sharma scored a silken century and skipper Virat Kohli hammered a powerful half-century as India cruised to a lopsided victory over Bangladesh in the Champions Trophy here on June 15,  Thursday to set up a Sunday final showdown with Pakistan.

Set 265 to claim the semifinal on a batsman-friendly surface, Rohit (123) and Kohli (96) made mincemeat of the Bangladesh bowling attack, romping to a nine-wicket victory in just 40.1 overs.

Bangladesh came into the contest, their first-ever appearance in the semifinal of an ICC event, with plenty of promise. Though they had beaten India just five times in 32 appearances, they possessed the talent and ability to cause an upset.

However, nothing of that materialised as India absolutely outplayed them to show how determined they are to become the first team to win a record three Champions Trophy titles.

First, they bowled brilliantly in glorious sunshine to restrict Bangladesh to a below-par score after Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim set the stage up nicely with fluent half-centuries. Part-time spinner Kedar Jadhav brought India back into the contest, dismissing both Tamim and Rahim.

Bangladesh then rallied towards the end of their innings but the might and class of Rohit and Kohli proved too much for them. The duo treated the record Edgbaston crowd to a wonderful exhibition of batting, unleashing some scintillating shots to hand Bangladesh a lesson.