That requires a collective effort from everyone. He chose a wrong shot when the Green-shirts were just one boundary away from the trophy. When you change format or venue you need to adapt very quickly and it’s a quick change for us.
Advertisement
The tall all-rounder was earmarked for greater things when he captained Australia to an Under-19 World Cup victory in 2010 and did not have to wait too long before he was selected for the senior side a year later. The left-hander made merry on the green tracks at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Bangladesh’s Mirpur, but it remains to be seen how he tackles the flat tracks and batting-friendly conditions at home.
“The whole feel and vibe of such a big tournament is different from a bilateral series”, Kohli said while addressing a press conference. Since that horror day in Chittagong, New Zealand are yet to play any match, in any format, in the subcontinent. “I am feeling like the mother of the bride”, says Rau, who as a player wasn’t used to such camera-attention. The way people expected things out of them.
“They have backed their skills and I think this is what has been the x-factor for us”. However, it is two youngsters – Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah – who have made a real difference since breaking into the side. For a team that boasts of the premier T20 league in the world, the side’s performances in World T20 hasn’t quite mirrored the expectations.
While India will look to keep doing what they have been doing for the past few weeks, New Zealand will be keen to play the attacking brand of cricket that they have been playing for a while.
“They have brought this confidence into this team which is good”.
In short, the revamped side has given itself a thorough work-out starting from the three-match series in Australia which Dhoni’s team won comfortably. We’ve already got another Bangladesh bowler who has performed well, Al-Amin Hossain, onside at 100/1. Pakistan needed 6 runs off 4 balls with one wicket remaining. We were all waiting for him to get fit and comeback in the finest rhythm.
“He’s done that, he has come back, is finding his rhythm and bowled well in the warm up game”. He is looking good. I can not comment on the composition or combination of the squad. For teams like England and Australia, traditionally more inclined to rely on quicker bowlers, limiting boundaries could be a big issue.
He said all the teams participating in the tournament are “evenly matched”. That could create a bigger impact than a guy scoring 80 and slowing down. “That was the sound that tells you that the batsman is in different mindset”. “From there, it’s anyone’s game”, Raj said. The loss of two of India’s top three for not many runs, an explosive start by Martin Guptil and Williamson batting first or New Zealand going well in chasing India’s total with dew making it tricky for India’s spinners. “As Shikhar has mentioned, his role is pretty clear, to go out there and take on the first six overs, take on the fielding restrictions”.
The World T20 will mark the start of a new era for New Zealand after the retirement of the inspirational Brendon McCullum last month.
MoneyGram International recently announced it has agreed to continue its sponsorship of the International Cricket Council (ICC) tournaments for an additional eight years, through the year 2023. If the focus goes here and there, the game is so fast that bouncing back becomes very hard.
“In the match tomorrow, we will be showing our respects by wearing black armbands and I believe after the anthems, there will be a moment where there will be a pause, so that will be a special time of recognition on behalf of the side”, he said.
India, hosting the tournament for the first time, begin the group stages with a match in Nagpur against New Zealand on Tuesday night. “We always enjoyed playing here”.
With the second round of qualifiers out of the way, the ICC can now stop pretending this is a 16-team global event and get on with the 10-team private party they wanted. “If you look at both the groups, the teams are very strong and evenly matched”, he added.
It’s going to be tough.
Advertisement
The girls, including the junior most Deepthi Sharma, 18, are encouraged to speak during team meetings and asked to contribute while the team analyses the strength and weaknesses of opponents after a game or during sessions with the video analysts. “The oppositions don’t matter for us so much at this stage”.
