Bengaluru: India head coach Rahul Dravid has all but ruled out resting any of the guns in the team before the crucial semifinal in Mumbai against New Zealand. By all accounts, it will be an unchanged 11 that will be in the middle against The Netherlands in Bengaluru on Diwali.
"We've had six days off from the last game. So, we're well rested and the guys are in good shape. That's all I'll say without giving away the level. We've got one game before the semi-final, that's all I'll say,” Rahul Dravid said in the pre-match press conference ahead of the game against the Netherlands.
Speaking in the context of pacer Prasidh Krishna, who replaced the injured Hardik Pandya, Dravid reiterated that changes in the team were unlikely to happen.
"You're at the pointy end in a tournament now. At this stage, it's about just focusing on getting the guys who you think are going to be playing in the 11 in the best possible space mentally and physically to be able to play that semifinal and hopefully the final,” he said.
India's unbeaten run across eight venues across the nation has been a matter of pride for head coach Rahul Dravid who sees it as a fantastic representation of India.
"We've maintained high standards. Our intensity is continuing. We've travelled the length and breadth of this country and played in eight venues. This is our ninth venue. What this team has done really well is it has really represented India fantastically. It's played a good brand of cricket,” he said, addressing the last pre-match press conference of the league stage matches, at the Chinnaswamy Stadium here on Saturday.
Talking about the difficult runs of associate teams, he said that the Dutch run in this tournament has been impressive. "I know how difficult it is for associate teams to be able to reach this level and play. Having spent some time in Scotland myself in early 2000, I know things have improved for the Associates since then,” Dravid said, praising the expansion run of the ICC in the last 20 years.
For him, Rohit Sharma has been a leader beyond doubt who has led by example both on and off the field.
"Some of the starts that he's (Rohit) given us, the way he's cracked open games for us. There have been some games where it could have been tricky for us, but the fact that he's been able to get us to those kinds of starts has cracked open the game. It's actually looked easy, but as a coaching staff when we looked at it, we've realized the impact his innings have had on games,” Dravid stated.
Sharma, he said, has earned the respect of the team. “Certainly, got the respect of our coaching staff,” he said.
Talking about the incredible run of the Indian bowling department, especially, under the lights, Dravid said, “In the first four or five, we bowled first and then we had to chase in the last three. So, we've done both things and we're comfortable with both.”
Coming to the “under-tested” middle order and its contribution when the occasion arose, Dravid said it had been truly exceptional. “I can look back on this campaign and the contributions of our middle order and they'll come only in sort of spurts, or one knock here, two there. Somebody did something there, or a Shreyas (Iyer), a KL, or Surya's knock here, and Jaddu's (Ravindra Jadeja) important knock in Dharamshala. These things give you those wins,” he stated.
Iyer, he said, brings temperament to the team.
"Look at some of his knocks under pressure, and how he's able to actually bring the best out of himself under pressure situations. One thing that he does is stand out. Look at his test innings and his Test debut. Look at the critical knocks he's played for us. Against Bangladesh, you know that game, under extreme pressure, who's the guy who stands up? Ash (Ravichandran Ashwin) and Shreyas, guys like that who have incredible strength of mind,” he remarked.
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