Asia Cup 2016: India vs UAE | United Arab Emirates Match 9- LIVE streaming, team news, squads, match timings

On paper, today's match i.e. India vs UAE at the Asia Cup 2016 might not appear to be much of a contest. While India have imposed themselves as the premier T20 side in the world, UAE are failing to convert chances into something substantial. With the participants for the final already decided, one would think there might not be a lot to play for.

However, with the World T20 just around the corner, no match is inconsequential for the ‘Men in Blue’. This match provides an excellent opportunity to test players such as Harbhajan Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Pawan Negi who have been warming the bench for too long.

For UAE, this is a great platform to show what they are capable of in the shortest format of the game. They will not be among the 16 teams in the T20 extravaganza and would look to go home with a memorable performance.

India vs UAE 2016 LIVE streaming details

TV Channel: Star Sports 1, HD1 (English) and 3, HD3 (Hindi)

Online Stream: www.starsports.com

Date: 03 March 2016, Thursday

Time: 07:00 PM IST, 07:30 PM local, 01:30 PM GMT

Venue: Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur, Dhaka.

For live scores and updates, visit Sportskeeda’s live card

Team News

Team India

At the end of a victorious match against Sri Lanka, MS Dhoni had hinted that he would want to experiment in the final group fixture. Hence, there is a possibility of a completely new-look bowling attack in the offing.

Harbhajan Singh who last represented India during the ODI against South Africa in Mumbai, could get a look-in. The team management should also give match practice to spinning all-rounder Pawan Negi who is a backup option in the squad for the World T20.

However, the batting lineup should remain almost the same as there is only one backup batsman available. With Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan not having had a significant partnership in the tournament yet, Rahane should still find himself on the sidelines.

Team UAE

Skipper Amjad Javed will be disappointed that they have not been able to get over the line, thus far. But, he has led from the front by picking up crucial wickets with the new ball and striking useful blows down the order.

Shaiman Anwar who set the 2015 ICC World Cup alight with his effortless batting, has struggled to get going in the Asia Cup. This may be a good time to enhance his credentials in the middle-order.

The UAE bowling attack is looking in a pretty decent shape after restricting Sri Lanka and Bangladesh to moderate totals. They even had a sniff against Pakistan by bowling beautifully in the first six overs.

Predicted XI

Indian Squad

Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli/Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni (C) (WK), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja/Pawan Negi, Ravichandran Ashwin/Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra/Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah

UAE Squad

Rohan Mustafa, Muhammad Kaleem, Mohammad Shahzad, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammad Usman, Amjad Javed (C), Usman Mushtaq, Swapnil Patil (WK), Mohammad Naveed, Ahmed Raza, Fahad Tariq

Pitch & Conditions

As the tournament is approaching its final stages, the pitches are also getting better for batting. The batsmen will breathe a sigh of relief as the grass is slowly starting to disappear. The weather is expected to be fine for the duration of the match.

Recent Form

India: W-W-W-W-W (most recent first)

UAE: L-L-L-W-W

Key Stats

1. Virat Kohli is tied with Brendon McCullum and Chris Gayle at 13 T20I half-centuries.
2. Muhammad Naveed has picked up 11 wickets from 6 matches (including qualifiers) in the Asia Cup at a healthy average of 11.27.
3. If India win, they will record their 40th victory in T20Is and will improve their W/L ratio to 1.6 which would be the highest among all teams.