India vs Netherlands: Can India Exit the Group Stage Unbeaten?

On Sunday November 12th, the India vs Netherlands contest is the last match of this World Cup league stage. It is more of a formality between two teams as its outcome does not affect either side.

One has already qualified for the next round, and the other has to depart from India after this game as they are eliminated from this competition.

The beautiful Chinnaswamy stadium of Bangalore will host the game on Sunday (November 12).

India is topping the points table chart and will play the semi with the 4th ranked team, be it New Zealand, Pakistan or Afghanistan. 

They have played exquisite cricket in this entire World Cup and got the better of every team they played against.

The Netherlands might take this game to learn something, as these associate teams hardly get to play against cricketing giants like India.

Here is one school of thought that India should rest their main players for this inconsequential contest, including their captain Rohit Sharma, to get them fresh and prepared for the semis, which is a good idea as it has been a long tournament. 

Another thought provokes the idea that unsettling the already unbeaten combination could prove costly as it can detract the players from that winning momentum.

It will be interesting to see whether Men in Blue will make any changes for this game or not.

Chinnaswamy stadium will be full with the sea of blue despite this game being unimportant for the hosts.

India vs Netherlands: Head to Head reocrd

India and the Netherlands have never met with each other in ODIs outside the ODI world cups.
 
In world cups, they locked horns 2 times, and men in blue came out victorious on both occasions.

India is by far a much-equipped side and would likely play this way with utter dominance.

Players to Look Out For

Must know players for India vs Netherlands:

Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma is one of the modern-day White ball greats without a second thought. 

Since he started to open for India in 2013, his fortunes have taken a massive turnaround, and he never looked back since then.

The Indian skipper has been in terrific form in this World Cup and has always given his team a formidable start.

The hitman Sharma is known for his batting masterclass and the ability to longer innings. Still, in this mega event, he has been the aggressor in the powerplay for his side, dictating terms to the opposition.

The elegant right hander has contributed 442 runs in the competition thus far for his team, and it is not about the runs; the way he scored these runs makes it look more pleasant.

Lazy elegance and effortless timing are the two major adjectives that could describe his batting.

The right-hander has already hit 20 sixes in the competition and is not done yet.

On a small batting-friendly wicket of Chinnaswamy, he would be a delight to watch for everyone.

In the past, he used to take his time early on with the new ball and then take charge, but since he became the captain.

The Indian captain has set a different template in the mega event with all guns blazing from the beginning, which puts enormous pressure on the opponent teams and makes the job easier for the batters coming after him.

Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli is probably the biggest icon of Indian cricket after Sachin Tendulkar, who will inspire many generations.

The words might not be enough to describe his greatness, as players like him are rarely born.

The mighty great of India equalled the record of Sachin Tendulkar after scoring his 49th hundred in the last match against South Africa.

He has been in superb form in the competition and scored 543 runs in 8 innings.

The ex-Indian skipper has been the backbone of his team, and he has already bailed them out from challenging situations throughout this mega event.

The 35-year-old right-hander would like to pile up more runs in his IPL home ground before he plays the all-important semi-final.

Muhammad Shami

Indian cricket was always famous and renowned for batting greats, one after the other, but the last few years have been about the rise of their bowling, especially the fast bowlers.

They keep producing one quality bowler after the other, and Muhammad Shami is among them.

The right-arm quick has been sensational in this World Cup and has already taken 16 wickets in 4 innings.

It seems like Hardik Pandya's injury proved to be a blessing in disguise for the Indian team, as now they are playing their 3 quick wicket-taking fast bowling options.

The 33-year-old quick has made a staggering difference after replacing Shardul Thakur, eventually making this bowling attack more lethal and potent.

It also proves that teams who do not compromise on their genuine bowlers for the sake of some extra runs from their late order will eventually do well in big tournaments.

India vs Netherlands Match Prediction

India starts this game far ahead of their opponents and is surely the favourites to sweep this point's table.

They are the only unbeaten team in this tournament, which speaks volumes of the kind of cricket they played in the last 6 weeks.

The Netherlands came to India with a lot of ambitions but couldn't do much to speak about.

Their most noticeable victory came against the Proteas, who struggled to chase 245 against them.

Holland needs something special to surprise this invincible Indian team, as their squad has hardly any weaknesses; the batters set the platforms, and the bowlers do the rest.

When Hardik Pandya was injured, it was assumed India would be missing his services as he added pivotal balance to the team as a 6th bowler.

They are playing with 5 proper genuine wicket-taking bowlers, and since then, they have been doing the job remarkably well.

This bowling unit of Men in Blue will be too hot to handle for the Netherlands, as all these bowlers have purple patch going on.

All these permutations support that the hosts are clear-cut favourites for this contest.

They are all set to play the semis, and this could be a walk in the park for them before the all-important knockout match.