India, hosts of the 2023 World Cup, remain the outright favourites in the mega event. But with the pre-tournament favourites taking a tumble in recent games -- Afghanistan stunning defending champions England, and the Netherlands bringing down a high-flying South Africa -- Bangladesh might fancy their chances today against Rohit Sharma and Co. 

However, for a fairytale outcome to materialise, Bangladesh would definitely need to defy the odds and, most importantly, transform one certain aspect of their game -- the batting -- that has only made the Tigers suffer in the recent matches.

Bangladesh will take on India at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune, a venue where 300-plus scores are the order of the day. The venue saw at least one 300-plus innings in five of the seven ODIs played in it so far. 

Meanwhile, the frailty in the batting order has been the prime cause of the Tigers' downfall for a while now. Put against any formidable bowling attack, Bangladesh saw a top-order meltdown almost every time. 

Not only Bangladesh will have to be wary of being blown away by the supreme batting prowess of India, but the Tigers will also have to do something that they have not been able to do frequently this year. 

In the 23 matches that the Tigers played since the start of 2023, Bangladesh were restricted to a score below 200 seven times. 

Only four times the Tigers were able to post 300-plus scores over the course of this year. But the fact that three of those innings came against Ireland and the other against Afghanistan in the Asia Cup last September only shows how Bangladesh batters have failed to prove their mettle against strong bowling lineups.   

On the opposite end of the spectrum is India, who have dominated every opposition they played so far this World Cup. The brief moment when the two-time World Champions looked vulnerable was when they slumped to three for two in chase of a mediocre 200-run target against Australia. But they prevailed in the game rather easily, chasing the target down with six wickets and 52 balls to spare. 

Against Afghanistan and arch-rivals Pakistan, India looked more ominous as they roared to victory with 90, and 117 balls, respectively. 

Despite what the recent form of the two sides suggests, a Bangladesh-India ODI in recent times has been anything but lopsided. In fact, the Tigers have a better head-to-head against their strong neighbours in the past 12 months, with Bangladesh claiming three wins in four outings. 

Shakib Al Hasan's troops might even take heart from their six-run victory over India in their latest ODI meeting in the Asia Cup in September. 

However, as things stand, it is very likely that the game between Bangladesh and India will eventually come down to the ability of the teams to post a big total on the board when batting first, and the capability of holding the nerves when chasing down a 300-plus score.