The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Dravid dismisses any talk of psychological edge

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Sep 14, 2006
ePaper

Sport

Sport - Cricket

Dravid dismisses any talk of psychological edge

Special Correspondent

Kuala Lumpur: The Indian skipper, Rahul Dravid, dismissed any talk of psychological edges, perceived or otherwise, saying Thursday's encounter against the West Indies would be "a whole new game."

He said the side was eager to get started on cricket after being denied in Sri Lanka. Dravid, who spoke to newsmen on Wednesday between nets and a session of catching under lights, said the composition of the side would depend on the kind of playing strip he saw on Thursday afternoon.

"It's a different wicket to the one that was played on, it's just a bit damp, so let's see how it dries up tomorrow. It also has a few cracks on it, so the decision on those two or three spots in the side will be made then," said Dravid.

Keen to do well

Would he take a cue from Tuesday's game and bat first? "Not if I see what I saw today at 3 p.m., I won't. From what I spoke to both teams, the track pretty much played the same through the game. Chanderpaul and Gayle showed you could bat well on it, bat positively on it."

The 33-year-old said the defeats in the West Indies had made the side "keen and determined to do well," but appended a caveat saying the team looked to do well against any side. Dravid said Yuvraj Singh would be missed, and added it gave an opportunity to someone who would hopefully handle the responsibility Yuvraj had shouldered in one-day cricket over the last year.

Meanwhile, the mood in the West Indies camp was sombre. At the Royal Selangor Club, the team members were given a stern talking to by Brian Lara as they completed a round of the ground. Ian Bradshaw, who addressed the press, said team strategy revolved around restricting the Indian batsmen.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who bludgeoned an 82-ball 92 against Australia, said Sachin Tendulkar's return would boost India's chances. "It's not an easy track to bat on (though) Sachin has done well in the past (on such tracks)."

The left-hander said his blitz wasn't pre-meditated. "I decided to play a few shots and see what happened. If you hung around, you could suddenly get an unplayable delivery." It's a method other batsmen just might adopt on Thursday.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Sport