Mahendra Singh Dhoni is all set to march his youth brigade in the ICC Champions Trophy 2013. He is looking upbeat to turn the odds in his favour with key players like Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ravindra Jadeja in his squad. Addressing the media after his arrival in England for the tournament, Dhoni said that the new rules and condition will force Team India to play with five specialist bowlers.
Excerpts:
“Fighting against the Odds”
It’s not going to be easy for the Indian team to win the matches in chilly weather of England. Champions Trophy is always a tough tournament as all the top teams play. But this tournament also provides plenty of experience to youngsters. Pride is at stake in all the international matches and this time it’s no different. But couple of warm matches would help us to know the right combination for the knock-out round.
Conditions are very different compared to sub-continent. We have to look at the composition of the side and see what kind of bowlers we use but the conditions and the new rule forces us to play with five bowlers. Adaptability is going to be a key in these conditions and then comes the matter of selection. It would be great that if none of my teammate gets any niggles and as it’s not going to be an ideal tournament that way.
“New Rules and New Blokes”
My only concern at this moment is how to use the new rules that have been introduced by ICC. Jadeja gives us the balance that we really need. He is a great asset to have with his 10 overs of spin bowling and batting down the order. We are hoping Jadeja fires or else we have a few others. Dhawan has made an impressive comeback which is a very positive sign for the top-order. He gives us both stability and raw power which is very much required in this format of the game.
Bhuvneshwar is most probably going to lead the Indian pace attack and might be very lethal in the English conditions. He is someone who can swing the ball both ways. He has some glorious years in front of him and he will have to face the challenges. With new balls used from both ends, it will be a challenge to bowl between 5th and 8th overs.
“Crystal-clear with Opening Slot”
Murli Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan will take on the responsibility to give India a good start in this Champions Trophy. It's good to have Shikhar and Vijay back in the side. They both scored runs in Test matches against a good side. Vijay had a decent IPL whereas Shikhar did well after coming back from injury. It's always better to start off with genuine openers.
Rohit will be the back-up option while I consider Dinesh as a specialist middle-order batsman.
“IPL- Battleground for Good Preparation of Champions Trophy”
“T20 is more of a lottery, if it’s your day you are going to be a winner. It’s the Indian players who got the exposure to play the best bowlers in the world right from Dale Steyn. The IPL helps us to stay in touch and good rhythm. Also the travelling was not very hectic as the hospitality is good. Yes, we have the stats against us but we need to improve that.