Daijiworld Media Network

Dhaka, Mar 3 : India have made three changes and after a long time we are going to see Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowl in a T20I for India, same goes for Harbhajan Singh who has been travelling with the team for sometime now but was not given a game. As far as Pawan Negi is concerned, the day is going to be etched in his memory forever. Well done young man, you have earned the India cap. A moment of silence is being observed by both teams in the memory of former New Zealand captain Martin Crowe who passed away earlier today.

Teams:

India (Playing XI): Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni(w/c), Hardik Pandya, Pawan Negi, Harbhajan Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah

United Arab Emirates (Playing XI): Rohan Mustafa, Muhammad Kaleem, Mohammad Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Muhammad Usman, Amjad Javed(c), Swapnil Patil(w), Mohammad Naveed, Qadeer Ahmed, Fahad Tariq, Ahmed Raza

MS Dhoni: "We wanted to bat first just in case we have to bat first in the final, other than that nothing changes. Slightly more grass than the last wicket. I do not think much has changed, bit of grass has been taken off. We have plenty of changes, Ashish Nehra, Ashwin and Jadeja have been rested. So, Bhuvi, Harbhajan and Pawan Negi come in."

Amjad Javed: "We will bat first. I guess, it is the same wicket that we played against Pakistan, putting runs on the board and putting pressure while chasing will be good for us. Everything has gone well for us, we have produced some good matches. We will try that again today. Usman Mushtaq is out and Qadeer Ahmed is coming in."

United Arab Emirates have won the toss and have opted to bat

Talking about the UAE - the kid who topped the class test but got horrible grades as he appeared for the semester exams. In the qualifiers, UAE ran through their opponents, getting the better of Afghanistan, who in recent times have been the most impressive of the associate nations. Having put up a great show, UAE were expected to challenge the bigger names in the main event. Instead, they turned out to be a bunch of deers caught in headlights. Their bowling did trouble the opponents but all the good work done by the bowlers was wasted by some ordinary batting. The Indian bowling might not be as express as Pakistan, who tormented them in their previous tie, but it boasts of variations. UAE will be better off by not focusing much on the might of the opponent. It will help them not get overawed and at the same time, ensure that they bring out their game face. They have nothing but pride to play for. Can UAE stage an upset? Toss, team updates, pitch report and live action to follow. We are getting the big news, BCCI have just tweeted that Pawan Negi will be making his debut today

Dead rubbers are used for two purposes. First, the dominant team tests its bench strength and tries to iron-out issues, if any. In some cases, they stick with the winning eleven, but try different combinations in pursuit of having a fully war-tested team before their all-important game. Second, those players who have not been lucky enough to be amongst runs or wickets look to optimize the opportunity. So, will Harbhajan Singh get a chance to roll his arm over today? Will Pawan Negi don the India jersey for the first time or will Dhoni want to rest his back and handover the gloves to Parthiv Patel? As much as a fan would want India to try out these combinations, Dhoni is not expected to make many. We have seen in the past his inclination to not alter with the winning combination.

If you still use Bangladesh and minnows in the same sentence, it is time to change that. Yesterday, they proved that - at least for now - they are one of the best T20I sides in Asia, pipping Pakistan to set up a date with India in the summit clash of the Asia Cup. Bangladesh's win has rendered the Sri Lanka vs Pakistan game - to be played on Friday - inconsequential. But before the battle for pride between Sri Lanka and Pakistan to be followed by the final hurrah between India and the hosts, it is time for a dead-rubber between the top team and the bottom placed side of the tourney. Hello and a warm welcome to all of you as India take on UAE tonight