 | « Back to article | Print this article |
Having beaten Pakistan and South Africa convincingly in their first two matches at the World Cup, India have one foot in the quarter-finals. Nevertheless, the players are not relaxing, instead preparing for stiffer challenges they will encounter in the next phase of the tournament.
With that in mind, the team is having centre-wicket practice, as suggested by team director Ravi Shastri.
The former India captain is a big believer in it, saying it helps in visualising situations.
- The World Cup, as never before on Rediff.com
- VOTE: Who will win the 2015 World Cup?
- PHOTOS: Gayle smashes FASTEST double ton
"When I travelled as cricket manager to Bangladesh in 2007 we had a short camp in Kolkata. Even then I insisted on centre-wicket practice. This helps in the batsman knowing where his off-stump is,
judge the bounce of the ball and also helps in finding where the slips and gully are," said Shastri of the strategy.
According to him, centre-wicket practice will also help bowlers correct their run-up and ensure they do not bowl too many no-balls.
"Batsmen come out to bat in a pair. That will also help in a big way because they can visualise match situation. The art of taking singles will also be something that the batsmen can practice when we do centre-wicket practice," he added.
Topping Pool B and remaining unbeaten throughout the league stage is the squad’s target and the players are focussed on keeping the momentum going in the lead-up to the crucial knock-out phase of the tournament.
There is near unanimity that the victory over Afghanistan in the warm-up changed the course of India's campaign.
- Apostrophe Content and Entertainment