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Should India retain same team for semis?

June 13, 2017 16:12 IST

Play Selector and pick India's playing eleven for Thursday's semi-final in Birmingham.

Team India

IMAGE: India's players celebrate a wicket against South Africa. Photograph: John Sibley Livepic/Action Images via Reuters

After an unexpected defeat against Sri Lanka, India were back to their ruthless best as they demolished South Africa by 8 wickets to storm into the ICC Champions Trophy semi-finals.

India's bowling and fielding were top class against South Africa. Virat Kohli got back among the runs and Shikhar Dhawan continued his golden run with the bat.

In the semis, they take on giant-killers Bangladesh who cannot be taken lightly, especially after they advanced ahead of 2015 World Cup winners Australia and runners-up New Zealand from Group A.

Bangladesh staged a sensational comeback against New Zealand to chase down 266 after they were reduced to 33/4 at one stage.

The last time India played Bangladesh, they finished on the losing side, suffering a 1-2 series defeat against the hosts two years ago despite fielding their best team.

Overall, India boasts of a splendid record against Bangladesh, having won 26 games while losing only 5.

Since the 2011 World Cup, a hugely improved Bangladesh side has won 3 matches while India has won double that number. One game was washed out.

Will India retain the same playing eleven that won the South Africa game? Or will Kohli and Coach Anil Kumble tweak the team a bit?

If the warm-up fixture against Bangladesh ahead of the tournament is anything to go by, then India will definitely want to bring in an extra pacer.

In that game, Bangladesh struggled against the Indian fast bowlers. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Umesh Yadav picked up three wickets apiece; Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya bagged a wicket each.

Will Ravindra Jadeja or Ravichandran Ashwin make way for Shami?

Could all-rounder Hardik Pandya or batsman Kedar Jadhav be dropped for Shami?

Do you think India should retain the same winning combination? Or should they bring in an extra fast bowler?

Please click the boxes below to select your Indian team for the game against Bangladesh.

Harish Kotian