India vs. Bangladesh: Date, Live Stream, TV Info and Cricket World Cup Preview

India's form at the 2015 World Cup belies the rotten time they had in preparing for the tournament; the defending champions failed to win a single official international from mid-November.

However, an opening group-match mauling of Pakistan set them up for a perfect pool stage in which they won all six matches.

That is tournament form at its best, and India are certainly favourites to make it at least as far as the semi-finals, as they face Bangladesh in the last eight at the MCG on Thursday.

The Bangladeshis are a solid outfit and have picked up some decent results in the tournament so far, but they are lacking in quality compared to India. Here are all the details ahead of the second quarter-final.

Date: Thursday, March 19

Time: 2:30 p.m. local, 3:30 a.m. GMT

TV Info: Sky Sports 2

Live Stream: Sky Go

Preview

Phil Walter/Getty Images

India's talismanic captain MS Dhoni truly joined the World Cup party in their final group game against Zimbabwe on Saturday, scoring an unbeaten 85 to help his side to their highest successful run chase at the World Cup—288 runs.

Dhoni's role as a finisher is essential for India, and he does it better than almost anyone else in the world. His Zimbabwe knock showed he certainly has not lost any of his effectiveness late on in a tight contest.

Along with the skipper, the majority of India's batting lineup is in rude health, with Suresh Raina, Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli all having scored at least one century in the tournament Down Under.

However, it has been the bowling unit that has truly impressed, restricting teams extremely well—Zimbabwe's 287 was the biggest total against India at the World Cup—and taking all 10 wickets in each group match.

Phil Walter/Getty Images

This fine balance India have found has made them genuine contenders to win the whole tournament.

The only problem with their group performances—if it can be seen as such—is that their bowling has been so effective that their ability to chase a score of over 300 has not been tested.

Scores of 300-plus have been prevalent at this World Cup—there have been 22 innings in which the mark has been breached.

Bangladesh's highest total thus far is the 322 they scored against Scotland, and in Mahmudullah they have a batsman well in form, having scored consecutive centuries in the last two group games. The floodgates opened after his maiden ton, per BBC TMS' Andrew Samson:

Bangladesh's final two group matches saw them beat England before running co-hosts New Zealand—the only other unbeaten side—incredibly close.

They have terrific momentum coming into Thursday's game, having been given little chance of making the knockout rounds ahead of the tournament.

However, they will need at last one three-figure score from an individual, with Mahmudullah their best hope. Considering India's frugal bowling, the defending champions have the edge in that respect.

Bangladesh cannot be underestimated. They have shown great ability and spirit at the World Cup so far, but it would be a huge upset if they dumped India out of the tournament.

Dhoni's match-winning innings against Zimbabwe will have galvanised not just the skipper, but the whole side, and they will beat Bangladesh if they take their group form to the MCG.