A confident Mahendra Singh Dhoni [Images] on Friday declared that the Twenty20 World Cup triumph is a thing of the past, and his team is now ready to play tough cricket against one-day champions Australia.

"It's past. We have won the World Cup. It's a thing of the past. It's the start of a tough series. You are playing the World champions. So we are just looking for some tough cricket," Dhoni said, ahead of the first One-Day International in Bangalore on Saturday.

"We are fully prepared. Everyone is really prepared for the match."

India's captain said having three former captains -- Sachin Tendulkar [Images], Rahul Dravid [Images] and Sourav Ganguly [Images] -- back in the team will help him.

"It definitely helps a lot. If you think about the experience that they have, it's amazing. They have played more than 300 ODIs each. That really helps. Of course, there will be tough situations in the series, and I am glad that I can turn to them. Of course Yuvi (Yuvraj Singh [Images]) is also there.

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"I can ask for suggestions. Ultimately, it's for deciding the best option that really works."

Dhoni said a wicketkeeper leading the team is an advantage.

"I don't think being a wicketkeeper (as captain) is a disadvantage. Being a wicketkeeper-captain is a plus as it helps in terms of arranging the field, where the batsman is playing and how the wicket is."

It is tough to see from cover or mid-off whether a delivery was hit off a bad ball or if it was really a good shot, he reasoned.

He brushed aside the tough talking by Australia captain Ricky Ponting [Images] in a media interaction on Thursday, saying the performance on the field is what matters.

"If they (Australians) come here, they talk a lot; if we go there, they talk a lot. If you talk about the past and the present, then their press conference is also past. Everything is past. Whatever I say, it's past.

"What you have done in the past and what you want to do in future does not matter," he said, adding, "What counts is performance on the match day."

"It is not about individuals performing, but the team coming together. It is a team game and that's how we played in the Twenty20 World Cup," he said.

He also said the choice is not between youngsters and senior players in the team.