Dhoni wary of unpredictable Bangladesh

Wary of an unpredictable Bangladesh team, Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni said his boys will not make the mistake of taking their opponents lightly, as even a hint of complacency could lead to them being upstaged in Saturday's super-four encounter in the Asia Cup, in Karachi.

India are overwhelming favourites in Saturday's clash, but Bangladesh are known to stun fancied teams once in a while, which has prompted Dhoni to remind his players of the perils of taking the opposition lightly.

"Cricket is a cruel game and you can't afford to relax any day. We are here, like the others, to try to win this tournament, as it is a big one from the Asian point of view," Dhoni said.

He said Thursday night's victory over Pakistan, which gave the Indians two carry-forward points, was just the kind of morale booster needed ahead of the super-four stage.

"We are carrying two points forward with us and that is a very big advantage for any side," he added.

India go into the match still unsure about the fitness of Irfan Pathan , who did not play in the last two matches due to a side strain.

Among the other super-four qualifiers, Pakistan is likely to be without top pacer Umar Gul, who bowled just eight deliveries against India before limping of with a rib cage injury.

India: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt), Virender Sehwag , Gautam Gambhir , Yuvraj Singh , Robin Uthappa, Yusuf Pathan, Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma, Piyush Chawla , Manpreet Gony, Ishant Sharma, R P Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Praveen Kumar.

Bangladesh: Mohammad Ashraful (C), Mashrafe Mortaza , Abdur Razzak, Alok Kapali, Dolar Mahmud, Farhad Reza, Mahmudullah, Mehrab Hossain jnr, Mosharraf Hossain, Mushfiqur Rahim, Nazimuddin, Raqibul Hasan, Shahadat Hossain, Shahriar Nafees, Tamim Iqbal.

0 comments: