Need to express ourselves, says Dhoni ahead of tie against Pak

Colombo, Sept 29: Shortly after a humiliating 9-wicket mauling at the hands of Australia, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni underlined the need for the side to express itself freely in the competition.

Addressing a post-match press conference here, Dhoni backed the team’s potential and emphasized on the need to play freely.

“I think the team has lot of potential. It’s just that we will have to implement it on the field. It’s important to go in the field and express ourselves. We may not lose badly. Lets play the big shots n ball aggressively. We have the talent, we have the resources, we just need to express ourselves,” he said.

India now face Pakistan in their must-win game on Sunday.

On being asked about the possible combination to be fielded against the arch-rivals, Dhoni said, “We will chose the eleven depending on the opposition and the wicket. We will also factor in rain this time.”

The skipper downplayed India’s average fielding effort against the Aussies, attributing it to the “bumpy” Premadasa turf.

“ I am not too much worried about the fielding. The ground here is bumpy, so the misfielding can happen. It’s not only us, but a few other sides are struggling as well. We are hoping it doesn’t become very critical in a match where 2 or 3 runs can matter,” he added.

Further, commenting on the pressure in the game against Pakistan, Dhoni underscored the need to enjoy the game.

“If you see we are always on top of the pressure chain, because of the expectation-level. Back home we are expected to win everything. So I don’t think it can really go beyond that. It’s important to enjoy the game and not worry about the results too much,” he said.

“The wicket has slowed down a lot. Even today when the Australian spinners were bowling, the ball was gripping and not really coming on to the bat. The big shots were not easy to play. I still think it will be on the slower side, and we are hoping the slower bowlers will come into action,” he added.