Feb 14 : Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav said his players are not concerned about the threat of rain for Sunday’s Twenty20 World Cup clash with Pakistan, adding that the defending champions are focused on preparing for the showdown between bitter rivals.
Pakistan had initially boycotted the Group A fixture in Colombo over Bangladesh’s removal from the tournament for refusing to play in India over security concerns, but reversed their decision on Monday.
But weather forecasts have warned of heavy rain between Sunday afternoon and evening, casting fresh doubts over the match.
“Weather is something which is not in our control,” Suryakumar told reporters on Saturday.
NO COMPLACENCY, SURYAKUMAR SAYS
He said the clash would not be a routine game for the co-hosts.
“When you play an India v Pakistan game it’s more about the occasion. It’s a big platform, obviously. No matter how many times you say, it’s just another game… it’s human tendency, you know which game you’re about to play,” the 35-year-old said.
“Whatever we have worked hard on and practiced, we try to execute them in the game.”
India and Pakistan have both won two games each in the tournament. While Pakistan played both their games in Colombo due to an agreement that they will play each other only on neutral venues, India arrived after a win over Namibia on Thursday.
Suryakumar said India would not be disadvantaged by unfamiliarity with the ground.
“We have similar wickets back home and we’ve played a lot of cricket here during bilaterals against Sri Lanka, so we’re also very familiar with the conditions,” he said.
India and Pakistan most recently faced off in last year’s Asia Cup, where India won all three of their meetings, including the final.
“You can’t carry history into the ground, because it can cause complacency,” Suryakumar said.
INDIA READY FOR ‘OUT OF SYLLABUS’ TARIQ
India have carried out preparations to face Usman Tariq, a spinner with an unorthodox action, who took three wickets for Pakistan during Tuesday’s win over the United States.
Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha said earlier on Saturday that Tariq was a trump card against India.
“At an exam, when there’s an out-of-syllabus question, we can’t just skip it, we have to try something to tackle it,” Suryakumar said about Tariq.
“We practice with similar bowlers, with similar actions. We’ll try to execute what we practice in the net sessions.”
Salman had also expressed hope that Indian opener Abhishek Sharma, who is the highest-ranked batter in the 20-over format, will play on Sunday after missing the previous game due to illness.
“All right, if (Salman) wants him to play, then we’ll play him tomorrow,” Suryakumar said about Sharma.
