Defending champions India look to tighten their iron grip both on the World Cup and on Bangladesh when the two neighbours meet in Melbourne for a semi-final spot on Thursday.

India have reached the quarter-finals with six wins in six pool games, bowling out the opposition every time.

They are heavily-favoured to become the second team in the last four after South Africa qualified on Wednesday with a nine-wicket rout of Sri Lanka.

India have defeated Bangladesh 24 times since their first meeting in 1998 and have lost just three -- although one of those defeats came in the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean, which led to India's early exit.

They got the best start on Thursday when skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss and chose to bat.

India are unchanged while Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza returned after missing the last pool game against New Zealand, replacing spinner Taijul Islam.

"It gets harder and harder from here. What makes it easy it to make good plans, and then try to execute them well," said Dhoni.

India batsmen Shikhar Dhawan (337 at 56.16) and Virat Kohli (301 at 75.25) are among the leading run-getters in the tournament while Bangladesh's bowlers have only dismissed two sides -- Afghanistan and England.

"It will be a high-scoring match on a flat pitch. We have to bowl well definitely," said Mortaza.

"It is the biggest challenge to bowl to India batsmen and the Indian bowlers have been pretty good.

"I think we have to bat as well as we did against New Zealand or England or any other side."

Thursday's game will bring cricket-mad Bangladesh to a virtual standstill, with many fans planning to watch on giant screens and millions attending match-day parties.

The team's progress to a first ever World Cup quarter-final has also helped lift the gloom caused by the country's current violent political strife.

"Back home all people were expecting that we could beat some bigger sides and go through. That was the most pressure I think," Mortaza said.

Melbourne will showcase all its weather extremes with 31-degree heat, 50km/h winds and a thunder storm predicted in the late afternoon.

Friday sees four-time champions Australia face 1992 winners Pakistan who suffered a major setback when giant fast bowler Mohammad Irfan was ruled out of the rest of the World Cup with a stress fracture of the pelvis.

The winner of that Adelaide match will face either India or Bangladesh for a place in the final.

"There is a lot of excitement and a few nerves around and everyone is trying as hard as they can in the nets to improve," said Australia opener Aaron Finch.

"There has been no way we have slackened off. Our training has maintained a real high intensity which, over a long tournament, can be hard to do at times."

The West Indies are confident star opener Chris Gayle, who has been laid low by a back injury, will be for Saturday's quarter-final against New Zealand in Wellington.

New Zealand all-rounder, the South African-born Grant Elliott, said he hardly noticed that the Proteas had cruised past Sri Lanka on Wednesday.

"I didn't watch too much. I saw it was quite a convincing win from them," he said.

Elliott said his South African heritage would have no bearing on how he would feel if New Zealand do face AB de Villiers' team for a place in the final.

"I'll just approach it as I would any other game. Our squad is here to try and win the World Cup as is every other team."