Dravid Admits Fears Over Easy Warm-Up Win

Indian captain not worried by Caribbean pitches

Dravid admits fears over easy warm-up wins

Cricinfo staff

March 11, 2007

Rahul Dravid, the Indian captain, is wary that two easy wins in his side's pre-World Cup campaign may backfire on them when they face tougher competition. India brushed aside the Netherlands by 182 runs and West Indies by nine wickets, and while happy with the confidence India gained, Dravid felt there were disadvantages as well.

"With a performance like this, it meant that some of our batsmen did not get a chance to bat, and our spin bowlers did not get a chance to bowl," he told reporters in Montego Bay. "I think the advantages some times outweigh the disadvantages when you beat a top team like West Indies so convincingly. I think what it does to the spirit of the team can be very important as well.

"No one should discount the plus points you gain from momentum, the plus points you gain from the confidence that it gives in winning over a team like West Indies who had the upper hand over us a lot over the last year."

India play their first World Cup match against Bangladesh in Trinidad on Saturday, and Dravid was keen to keep his side grounded. "They [the warm-up games] would give you a pointer as to where you are with your preparations and your readiness.The games were 13 players against 13 players, and teams were trying different things. I think the big event is the big event.

"We have won both our games, but we will keep our feet firmly planted on the ground knowing full well that the real tournament starts for us on March 17. We can take some confidence from the matches, and we can learn some lessons from them, but the real cricket for us starts on March 17."

Dravid also chose not to comment about the West Indian pitches, as India had other issues to think about. "We do not talk about them too much in our team meetings because what we are focusing on is the performance of our team," he said. "We are focusing on the flexibility we can build in our squad, the depth we can build in our squad, and we are pretty confident that we have the team that can perform on any type of pitch. It's not really going to be an issue because it's going to be the same for both teams on any given day, and it will come down to the team that performs better on the day, and the team which does this will win."

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