Sammy Terms Match David Vs Goliath

“Well, there is a saying that history could repeat itself,” he quipped during the pre-match presser on Saturday. “I still think in order to win this tournament; you have to go through India at some point. Tomorrow is that day for us and we’ve got to play a good game of cricket to come out victorious. I’m excited about the contest. I’m pretty sure they’ll have, what, 80,000 fans here tomorrow, and then another 1.4 billion supporting India. So it will still feel like a David and Goliath showdown but like I said in 2016 — David did defeat Goliath — so that’s what I’m going to tell my boys tomorrow,” he said.

“It will be a massive, massive celebration for us to get through to the semifinals. We’ve not been there in 10 years, so that would be an achievement for the group, and it means that our mission is still possible,” he added.

Asked about his team’s preparation for Indian spinners, especially Varun Chakravarthy, Sammy said: “I think, last time I checked, I think he was the number one bowler in T20 cricket. We respect every opposition. Their team has quality, they’ve got match winners, just like we do. And it’s a battle of who executes with both bat and ball. And I add the fielding as well. I expect it to be an exciting game,” he added.

He refused to pick any dangerman in the rival camp. “I know I have 11 danger players. Yeah and India I’m pretty sure they believe they have 11 as well. So we don’t only look at two players, we plan for every single player,” Sammy said.

Sammy was also pleased with the way Shimron Hetmyer batted in the tournament. “I see he’s the most relaxed and focused I’ve seen him in the West Indies dressing room since I’ve been around. And he’s enjoying the game.

I mean, we the coaches and his teammates, most importantly, challenged him for that number three position. And the responsibility he’s batted with, it’s given us a boost and sends a lot of positive, confident messages in the dressing room. So hopefully tomorrow he has another belter of an innings. But as we’ve shown throughout the tournament, we don’t really rely on one person. We get performances from different players. And hopefully tomorrow that game, that all-around game we’ve been searching for, it comes to light tomorrow,” he said.