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But then Bumrah and Shami pulled things back, removing Scotland openers George Munsey and Kyle Coetzer. India have won the toss, a rare toss going by Virat Kohli’s record. They have decided to bowl first. Just one change: Chakrawarthy comes in and Shardul Thakur misses out. will be up against Scotland tonight where they would look to beat their opponents with a huge margin, again. In their last match, they managed to beat Afghanistan with a margin of 66 runs.

Anything less than that can be fatal for Kohli and his men whose semi-final hopes are hanging by a thread. Pakistan have already made the semifinals with four straight wins and New Zealand are favoured to join the Men in Green in the last-four stage from Group 2.

However, a loss for the Kiwis against either Namibia on Friday or Afghanistan next week, and India will have their tails up. Rohit, his opening partner KL Rahul, and the swashbuckling duo of Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya, fired against the Afghans and they will fancy their chances of doing an encore on Friday evening.

The last two if they get a chance to bat as the likes of skipper Kohli are slotted above them in the line-up. Back in the team after missing the New Zealand game, Suryakumar Yadav will be there as well to bolster the batting, and so will be all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja. If the batting was all about aggression, India’s bowling too delivered against Afghanistan, with seasoned off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin signalling his T20I return after a four-year gap with an excellent spell.

Finally, featuring in the playing XI after endless chatter around his absence, Ashwin not only picked up two wickets but was also very economical with the ball, giving away only 14 runs in his full quota of four overs.

Needless to say, skipper Kohli was delighted with Ashwin’s returns and lauded his effort after the game. “The return of Ash was the biggest positive, it was something he has worked really hard for,” Kohli said at the post-match presentation when asked what was biggest takeaway from the massive win. “He (Ashwin) showed this control and rhythm in the IPL as well. He’s a wicket taker and a smart bowler as well.” Ashwin, who last played an international game in June in the World Test Championship, finally got a game after nearly four and half months.

He was named in the playing XI after mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy developed a left calf issue. That Chakravarthy is not ready for high pressure international cricket has been exposed and it is unlikely he will feature any further in the tournament. Seamer Mohammed Shami will have his tails up after a three-wicket haul in the last match and so will be Jasprit Bumrah.

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