Pathan confident of India's chances in Twenty20 World Cup

London: The first edition of Twenty-20 World Cup provided Irfan Pathan with another lifeline in international cricket, and the Indian all-rounder grabbed it with both hands by becoming the Man of the Final.

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Pathan, who plays for King's XI Punjab, had a decent tune-up for the World Cup in IPL-2 and spoke to Gulf News before leaving for London.

Gulf News: Will fatigue be a factor once you reach England to play the T-20 World Cup?

Pathan: I do not think so. We are professionals who know what [has] to be done. We were aware of the fact that the T-20 World Cup was approaching and we took the IPL positively.

You have spent more than one and a half months touring outside India. Don't you think IPL could have been timed better?

On the contrary, I believe that this was a perfect preparation for the Indians. Generally, we do not get much scope to play T-20 matches regularly.

IPL had provided us with the opportunity and we are going there with some match practice just prior to the World Cup. So that's going to help us more. We are fully prepared and had adjusted ourselves.

What are the chances of India retaining the T-20 World Cup?

We should retain it. We had played great cricket to win the inaugural edition of the T-20 world cup and we are quite well prepared to do so again in England. We have a good balanced side. There's just no reason why we should not. We are going there with positive mindset.

Who were the discoveries of the second edition of the IPL?

So many. Think about the guys like T. Suman, Manish Pandey and some other guys. They came up just because of the IPL. Last year, too, we had some very good talent unearthed. The IPL had done the same again.

How does it feel when your brother hits a six off you?

Well, when I hit a six off Yousuf and the look on his face is something, really! I know when he hits it off me, my face too, looks almost the same [laughs]. We are very good friends off the field, beside being brothers.