World Twenty20: All eyes on hosts in opener against Kiwis

Nagpur: All eyes are on hosts and favourites India as they clash with an in-form New Zealand in their first match of the sixth edition of ICC World Twenty20 tournament.

Answering how much confidence they would draw from their recent warm-up matches as well as the title victory in the Asia Cup, vis-a-vis the fact that their rivals New Zealand, who have not won a major tournament, India’s star batsman Virat Kohli said: “We are very confident with the way we have been playing. We have won 10 out of 11 last games we have played, taking some good momentum in to the World Cup. The Asia Cup was a good preparation for us for a big tournament; getting the feel of playing against the big teams.

“But this is going to be far more challenging because teams from all over the world are competing here. If you look at both the groups, the teams are very strong and are evenly matched. It’s going to be tough but we would like to focus on our strengths. The oppositions don’t matter for us so much at this stage. Obviously, we need to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition, but its more to do with how we have played and continue the same way and probably try and execute the same things that have brought us so much success.”

New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson understands the enormity of the challenge that India can pose, but he reminded that in Twenty20 no team can be termed strong.

“Every team is very strong, which makes for a great competition, and in this part of the world it brings in an added challenge to other teams. At the same time Twenty20 cricket is fickle in its nature and if you go out and express yourself, play with that freedom, anything can happen.”

Kohli feels that it is important to think themselves as the favourites despite the so-called uncertainties about the Twenty20 format. “If you know your home conditions well and you are playing good cricket, then obviously people will expect that you will go far in the tournament. And we are obviously favourites in our own minds — if we aren’t then there is no chance of progressing in the tournament. The important thing is to focus on every game because in this tournament if your focus wavers, the game moves so quickly that making comebacks becomes very difficult, as a batsman, as a bowler or as a team, all three.

“Since coming back from a poor phase is very difficult, it’s imperative that you start on the right note, on a positive note and maintain the momentum that we have built over the last 11-12 matches. We have been able to perform so consistently because we have not thought too far ahead. We have looked to execute our skills in every game, and that’s why we have got results. We will try not to do anything too different in this tournament and not look at this tournament in a very different way. That will be our strength.”

When asked how prepared is his team to tackle the slow wickets, Williamson said: “We certainly are expecting spin to pay a big part in this tournament. I suppose judging by the warm-up games in Mumbai, they had a bit for the seamers and it swung a little bit. They were very good surfaces but from what cricket we have seen here in Nagpur, spin looks likely to play a big part. It’s important that we adjust our gameplan accordingly.”