Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh) [India], September 14 : Ahead of the much-awaited cricket match between India and Pakistan, Kuldeep Yadav's childhood coach, Kapil Pandey, shared some advice for the Indian cricket team on Sunday.
Talking about the Indian cricket team's performance, Kuldeep Yadav's coach Kapil Pandey emphasised that even though team India is strong, the team should not be overconfident in this game.
"I think our team is very strong, but it should not be overconfident (Team India) as we have to win this game against Pakistan at any cost," Pandey told ANI.
To win the match, Pandey advised specific players on their performance in this match. According to Pandey, players like Abhishek Sharma and Shubham Gill as batsmen should provide a strong start to the game.
"Whatever team game we play, we will do our best. Our batsmen, Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill, should give us a good start. While Sanju Samson, Tilak Verma, Surya Kumar Yadav, who is the captain and Hardik Pandya, who are capable of batting in all ways, should make it in singles and doubles, and have to keep them at around 250 runs. But in such a situation, if we get a wicket, then we have to come and take it," Pandey said.
"Sanju Samson, Tilak Verma, Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya should try to maintain the run target of 250. Pandey also advised that if India bowls first, then we should restrict the Pakistan team to 150 runs. If we bowl first, then we have to stop it around 150 runs, because we have bowlers like Bumrah, who is accompanied by fast bowlers, such as Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, and now we have Akashdeep and Arshdeep Singh. So if you look at all those things, the bowling side is very good," added Pandey.
He further asserted that in a 20-over game, the players should maintain focus till 10 overs. Later, from 11 to 20 overs onwards, the run rate should be maintained.
"In a 20-over game, you have to keep an eye till 10 overs. When we start from 11 to 20 overs, we have to maintain the run rate," Pandey said.
Moreover, he also expects Kuldeep Yadav to take five wickets from Pakistan, just like he did in the last Asia Cup and emphasised that cricket in India is like a religion. Hence, it is the responsibility of the whole team to win this match
"To Kuldeep Yadav, I would like to say that the way you showed in the Asia Cup, you took five wickets against Pakistan in the last Asia Cup, I want you to retake five wickets this time too...There is a lot of pressure on the players because India is not just a game. It is like a religion. All the people of India want to win this match. So it is the responsibility of the whole team to win this match and give people a gift, so that once again, people celebrate Diwali before Diwali. asserts Pandey.
Meanwhile, cricket fans in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, performed aarti and prayed for Team India's win against Pakistan in the Asia Cup match.
An Indian Cricket fan who participated in the pooja said, "We hope that just the way our Indian Army defeated the Pakistani Army, similarly, we hope that our cricket team will also defeat their team one-sidedly today. The Pakistani team lags behind us in terms of cricketing skills and understanding of cricket. Our cricket team will fight like soldiers, and that is why we are calling it Operation Sindoor 2."
However, the scheduled cricket match is facing severe criticism from the families of the Pahalgam victims as well as the opposition. For instance, the family members of the victims of the deadly Pahalgam attack criticised the government for the upcoming cricket match between India and Pakistan and stated that the family was "very disturbed" when they received the news.
This dissatisfaction was not limited to family members; some politicians also questioned Team India's participation in the Asia Cup and its decision to play matches against Pakistan. AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi questioned the decision to play cricket matches with the rival country, emphasising that is the value of money more than the lives of our 26 citizens?
"We ask the Prime Minister, when you said that blood and water cannot flow together, dialogue and terrorism cannot happen together, then how much money will the BCCI get from one cricket match, Rs 2000 crore, Rs 3000 crore? Is the value of money more than the lives of our 26 citizens? This is what the BJP should tell... We stood with those 26 citizens yesterday as well, we stand with them today, and we will stand with them tomorrow as well..." Owaisi told reporters.
The Indian cricket team will face their arch-rivals Pakistan in their second Group A clash of the ongoing Asia Cup 2025, which will be played at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium at 8:00 pm IST today.
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