Cricket is truly an unpredictable game. And hence one witnesses upsets happening time and again in this game. In the ongoing world cup, Afghanistan pulled out the first upset by defeating the defending champions England. Similarly, yesterday Netherlands defeated South Africa resulting in 2nd upset. While these upsets are a moment of joy for the team which no one thinks to win it, it is a matter of humiliation for the stronger teams amongst the two. It lessens the possibility of the losing team to go ahead in the tournament, something which everyone anticipates earlier.

And one such moment of humiliation was faced by Men in Blue by Bangladesh, back in 2007 World cup. An India team comprising of legends likes Sachin, Ganguly, Dhoni, Yuvraj and led by Dravid was defeated by a minnow Bangladesh in the most unprecedented encounters of world cricket. The upset worsened India's chances of going ahead in the tournament, as the team suffered great humiliation on and off the field. It also marked the 2007 world cup as the worst world cup campaign for India. Fortunately for India, the team has never suffered any upset since then in World cups. And they have emerged victorious over Bangladesh on every occasion they have met since then in ICC events. And the two will meet tomorrow again. What will be the outcome. A easy win for Rohit's men, as expected by many, or an upset from Bangladesh?

Let's asses it step by step. The match between the two subcontinent test playing nations is happening at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune. The Pune stadium is open from 3 sides, and has a huge stand on only one side. The 3 sides are exposed to good breeze, and the vicinity of some small hills nearby further helps the breeze to freely flow in the stadium. It gives the bowling side an advantage, particularly during the time when the floodlights turn on. Till 2017, the seamers hade a good chance to display their swinging skills under floodlights at this venue. And it changed post 2017 when the venue saw high scoring matches.

Furthermore, the record of Indian team at this stadium in ODIs says 4 victories out of 7 played here. Out of all these matches, a firm conclusion driven is that the pitch offers some help to pacers in 2nd innings in day night match. Only twice the case was different. First was in January 2017, when India chased a total of 351 runs. In this match, the local boy Kedar Jadhav was instrumental with his 76 ball 120 runs knock. Had it not been the local guy, struggle was real for India. And the 2nd occasion was when hard hitters like Bairstow, Roy and Malan attacked from the first ball itself to help their team chase 337. On rest of the occasion, the team batting first has had an upper hand to bat first and score good. If they did, the match was their's.

Now looking at all these factors and the statistics collectively, it is evident to see some swing in the start of 2nd innings. Indian batters have had some issues with left arm seamers. Particularly the top order have had some woes, and they have managed to overcome those here in this world cup. However the stadiums they have played have not offered much help to seamers. And knowing the fact that left armed Mustafizur Rahman plays for Bangladesh in this match, this pitch could offer him the support him and his team needs if they bat first and bowl under lights, and it could mean some problems to Indian batters.

Currently, the Indian team looks in great shape. The victory against Australia, Afghanistan and Pakistan have increased confidence of Men in Blue multifold. Furthermore, it has shown the newly developed bowling prowess of Indian cricket. The morale of the team is top notch and going ahead it could be the biggest positive for the team. However, all the three matches are chases for the team, which were either of low or average scores. Indian team is yet to bat first in this tournament set a good total. Also they have not received any 300+ or even more challenging target to be chased. And going ahead these factors will be important. Although this match is not a must win game for the team, a loss is something they never want.

On the other hand, Bangladesh had a rather poor run in the tournament so far. Sitting at number 7 in the table, they need to win a big game to survive this campaign. They won the first match against Afghanistan, after asking them to bat first and rattling their batting. However the next 2 matches went against them. Their encounter with England led them to chase 365 runs, which they failed to do. The Dharamshala stadium, open from 3 sides to breeze helped English team decimate Bangla batters who batted second. And in their match against Kiwis, the Blackcaps comfortably chased the Bangla set total of 246 runs. So, Bangla batters are struggling to bat, and raring to go in the next match. And so are their bowlers, who are eager to assess the conditions to their favour, in an almost must win match for them.

So, to conclude all these together, India look dominant, and Bangladesh would look to dominate. In a situation like this, given the conditions at the venue, in all possibility the team which wins the toss should bat first. If India bats first, they would be the clear favourites to win this contest, continuing their winning streak. And if by chance Bangladesh wins the toss and bat first, Indian team might struggle under the lights if Bangladesh score good batting first. So, the chances of an upset are equally good, as are the chances of an Indian win. If India wins, that is what most have anyway anticipated. However, if batting first and posting a good total helps Bangladesh win the match, the upset should not be considered as a surprise.