Former Test batsman Sanjay Manjrekar feels the experience of playing high-pressure matches in the IPL will stand the Indian players in good stead during the upcoming World Twenty20 Championship commencing on June 5 in England.
''There is nothing like match practice getting into a tournament like the ICC World T20 and India have had a lot of match practice. I also believe that India are the strongest team in the competition because of individual ability of each player and experience in this form of the game. This is beacuse of the sudden surge of T20 interest in India and the IPL,'' Manjrekar wrote in his coloumn in 'espnstar.com'.
''In the last three to four years, the Indian team has changed in nature. Earlier in the 1990's, the team depended heavily on a couple of players to win matches but with the unpredictable nature of the Twenty20 format, you need more than two or 3 match winners and that is where India's strength is. Now there are at least eight players out of a 11 who can win you matches single handedly,'' he added.
With several young Indian players coming out with standout performances during the second season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Manjrekar feels Team India stand a strong chance of defending their World Twenty20 crown.
''The emergence of Suresh Raina is also vital. He wasn't as dangerous a player in the last World T20 as he is this time round.
''I get the feeling he himself has been surprised by discovery of a new facet in his batting. The big hitting,'' he stated.
''Then there is Pragyan Ojha, who is such a handy bowler to have in the side. A spinner who wants to make difference to the side by taking wickets and not just bowl his quota of overs without incident. His grown confidence has added to India's ability as a T20 team.
''Furthermore, RP Singh's performance is good news for India. His body language looked great in the IPL and with his tail up he will enjoy bowling in England,'' he added.
The 43-year-old former right-handed batsman also praised skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's leadership qualities for India's success in the shortest format of the game.
''MS Dhoni's calm leadership is also critical. We have seen how much leadership plays a part in the success of teams in the T20.
India's leadership is what also makes India a top T20 team and worth defending champions,'' Manjrekar opined.
''Because of the unique fan following of the game in India and with it the abnormal expectation, India is getting accustomed to generally handling pressure. Also having played many high profile matches and series in the recent past, This Indian team is also now more used to playing in the big matches than some of the other top teams.'' However, the former middle-order batsman sounded a word of caution, warning that the abundance of talent in the squad is no guaratee that India will emerge T20 world champions yet again.
''Finally and most importantly having raved about India's qualities as they go into defending the title does not mean that they will. From the short history of T20 we have seen so far that all decent teams have a great shot at winning,'' he warned.
''It's a high risk sport and more things are out of your control in T20 game than a 50 over game or a Test match. So because 'you have a very good team you have great shot at the title' is a logic that would apply the least here.''
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