‘Not taking anything lightly’: Sunil Gavaskar says India are already in T20 World Cup mode

NEW DELHI: Sunil Gavaskar believes India’s dominant showing against New Zealand is far more than just a routine bilateral success, calling the ongoing T20I series an early warm-up for the defence of their T20 World Cup crown. With India racing to an unassailable 3-0 lead after a commanding eight-wicket win in Guwahati, the batting great said the signs of serious preparation were clearly visible.

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“This series is like an appetizer; the main course begins from the 7th of February,” Gavaskar said on the JioHotstar show. “Having won the series, the focus now is on defending the World Cup title. These players are preparing thoroughly.”




Gavaskar underlined how India are leaving nothing to chance, even with several players yet to get significant time in the middle. “Some of them haven’t even had the chance to bat, so they are working on range-hitting, timing, rhythm, bat flow and pick-up. It shows the focus of this team; they are not taking the World Cup lightly and not taking anything for granted,” he said.

India’s depth, according to the former captain, has been one of the biggest takeaways from the series. “India has complete confidence in themselves. When you have players like Rinku Singh and Hardik Pandya batting down the order, and they haven’t even needed to bat in two matches, and India is still winning comfortably, it tells you the kind of calibre this team has,” Gavaskar noted.


He also felt the current batting mindset is perfectly aligned with the demands of T20 cricket. “In a 20-over game, if a batter tells himself that he has five or seven overs, he can look to score off almost every ball. It doesn’t always have to be a boundary or a six. The idea is to make every ball count,” he explained, adding that the belief to recover from minor setbacks is a hallmark of this side.

Gavaskar reserved special praise for Abhishek Sharma, whose 14-ball half-century in Guwahati was the second-fastest by an Indian. “Getting to a fifty in just two overs is extremely tough. But what Abhishek Sharma has shown is that he is capable of doing that,” he said, joking that “the happiest person will be Yuvraj Singh” as his long-standing record edges closer to being broken by his protégé.

On Suryakumar Yadav, Gavaskar said the captain’s innings in Raipur had come at the perfect time. “He hasn’t been short of form; he’s been short of runs. That knock gave him exactly the confidence he needed,” he said.


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