Ahmedabad: One team has sailed comfortably into the knockout stage of the tournament. The other is clutching at straws, desperate for outside help to extend their stay at the T20 World Cup. It will be a game of contrasting fortunes as India take on Netherlands in the last Group ‘A’ match at the imposing Narendra Modi Stadium here on Wednesday night.
Having beaten USA, Namibia and Pakistan, the hosts are on top of the table with six points and into the Super Eight stage. The Dutch are in doldrums with just two points from three games and will have to defeat a power-packed India by a huge margin after expecting Namibia to nail Pakistan in their last group game. The equation would be clear much before they take to the field though as the Namibia-Pakistan (afternoon) match would be over by then. For the Dutch, it would be the case of an uphill climb or being down in the dumps.
However, they are prepared to give it their best shot, going by their intensity at a lengthy practice session under the blazing Sun on Tuesday afternoon, with a sea of vacant orange seats perhaps giving them a silent fan feel. They sure would want to go out with heads high, if it comes to that. Having run Pakistan very close in the tournament opener 10 days ago, Oranje would harbour hopes of upsetting the Indian apple cart for a juicy win.
For now it’s Suryakumar Yadav’s India who’ve got the flow though, and are charting their own path. The Blues would look at this game as preparation for the crucial second stage of the tournament where they are likely to play South Africa, Zimbabwe and West Indies.
Captain Surya and coach Gautam Gambhir would be keen to fine-tune the machine that has stuttered a bit on their way to the Super Eights. The contests against USA and Namibia are cases in point where the defending champions have stumbled before regaining ground. India would do well to remember the 77 for 6 they had slipped to by the 13th over against USA before SKY lifted them to a decent total. Then, they saw Namibia racing in their pursuit of 209 for most part of the first half before skidding off the track. It is these rough spots that the home team would look to iron out before the next, rugged, round.
The match also provides a chance for the Blues to test bench strength. Washington Sundar is yet to play a game in the tournament and chances are that he would be drafted in to be given game time and a feel of the action.