By IANS,
Bangalore: An upbeat India is raring to go all out to maintain the winning momentum against England in their Group B match of the ongoing cricket World Cup at the Chinnaswamy Stadium here Sunday, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said.
“It is going to be a crucial game for both. But we are going all out to maintain the winning momentum we started on against Bangladesh in Mirpur last week (Feb 19),” a confident-looking Dhoni told reporters Saturday.
Clarifying that all the team members, including big hitter Virender Sehwag were fit to play, Dhoni said each match in a competitive World Cup was important irrespective of the opponent and everyone would give his best to keep winning.
“Except (pacer) Ashish (Nehra), all other players are fully fit and will play to their potential. As every one-day game is new, we have to start in a big way whether batting or bowling first and execute our plans accordingly to win,” Dhoni said at a pre-match interaction where a large contingent of British media was present to cover the high-profile game.
Asked if the team had specific strategy against English batsmen, especially the hard-hitting Kevin Pieterson, Dhoni said though individuals could change the course of the game with outstanding contributions, the team had winning plans against all the 11 opponents and would have to excel in batting, bowling and fielding.
“Though individuals do matter, our approach will be against the opponent’s team and adopt strategies as the game progresses to gain advantage,” Dhoni observed.
Admitting that playing on home turf would have its own pressure due to high expectations, Dhoni asserted that playing under any kind of pressure was not new and the team had learnt to handle it.
“It is also an advantage to play in front of your own fans as their encouragement and support would help us in doing best,” Dhoni quipped.
On the composition of the team, the wicket-keeper said the final squad would be announced Sunday morning after studying the pitch condition and the weather as thundershowers or sudden rain was forecast for the day.
“We will make the final selection after assessing the ground situation. Between the two south paws Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina, we have to make a right choice though the former (Yuvi) can also bowl,” Dhoni pointed out.