MUMBAI: Captain Mahendra Dhoni is confident India can retain the Twenty20 World Cup in England next month.
“I’ve got a team with outstanding talent. If we play to our potential, we can defend our title,” Dhoni told reporters in the western Indian city of Mumbai ahead of the team’s departure for England late yesterday.
“We’re going to give it our best shot. Each player wants to do something special,” said Dhoni, under whose captaincy India won the inaugural T20 World Cup in South Africa in 2007.
The second edition of the biennial T20 World championship will be played June 5-21 at three venues in England.
“Being defending champions doesn’t put any additional pressure on us,” said Dhoni, whose team is accustomed to the high expectations of a cricket-obsessed nation. “It’s just an add-on pressure that we can handle.”
“One cannot keep thinking about the outcome of matches, we can only focus on our preparation.”
In 2007, Dhoni won the title with a second-string Indian squad, as the selectors had rested most of its top players after a tour of England and ahead of home series against Australia. This time the squad is much more experienced.
The 2007 victory boosted the popularity of T20 cricket, leading to the subsequent launch of the lucrative Indian Premier League that has attracted top players from across the world.
“The IPL has really helped young players get accustomed to pressure situations, and international cricket is all about handling pressure,” Dhoni said.
“I’m not worried about the batting or bowling form of my players. My only worry is that players don’t get injured.”
Zaheer raises hopes
Meanwhile, India’s hopes of retaining the title were boosted yesterday with news that pace bowler Zaheer Khan was expected to recover from injury before the second group game.
“Zaheer is most likely to get fit by the second or third game...not exactly sure...He’s not 100 percent fit for the first game,”’ captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said.
Zaheer, India’s leading bowler over the last two seasons, underwent rehabilitation in South Africa after picking up a shoulder injury during the Indian Premier League (IPL).
“We have got talent like Praveen Kumar, Rudra Pratap Singh who can really swing the ball, and (Irfan) Pathan,” Dhoni said.
Dhoni backed his side, who meet Bangladesh and Ireland in Group A of the 12-team tournament, to defend the crown.
“I’m blessed with a side that is really talented,” wicketkeeper-batsman Dhoni said. “(It’s) not only about talent, I think each and every individual has been part of the side since the last T20 World Cup.”
India squad: Mahendra Dhoni (captain), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma, Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, Praveen Kumar, Zaheer Khan, Rudra Pratap Singh, Pragyan Ojha and Ishant Sharma.
