AB De Villiers Points Out ‘Only Big Obstacle’ For Rohit Sharma’s India In ICC World Cup 2023
New Delhi: India are one of the strongest contenders in the ICC World Cup 2023 but former South African cricketer AB de Villiers expressed concerns about the immense pressure that the Men in Blue will carry on their shoulders during the tournament at home. India is hosting the World Cup independently for the first time which starts next month. India start their campaign on October 8 against Australia in Chennai.
The last time India won the World Cup was at home in 2011 when they defeated Sri Lanka at the Wankhede Stadium. However, it was India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, who jointly hosted the tournament with the final in Mumbai.
De Villiers, who has spent a good amount of time in India while playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League (IPL), felt there would be huge expectations of Rohit Sharma’s men.
“I think India’s squad is incredible, really, really strong. Captain Rohit, Hardik Pandya [is the] vice-captain,” De Villiers said in a video on his YouTube channel. “The only worry I have for India is playing at home. Last time they played in India, they won.
“There will be huge pressure. That’s the only big obstacle in my opinion,” added the former South African skipper. India have already announced their 15-member squad for the ICC World Cup 2023 and De Villiers urged the side to go fearless on their business.
“But go fearless. And that is exactly the word I’m talking about. Forget about the pressure of the nation, that’s something you can’t control. Control what you can control. Fearless is the word I’m looking for in the Indian squad.
“If they can do that, they’ll go a long way and most probably lift that trophy,” he added. A big fan of Suryakumar Yadav, De Villiers stated he is happy to see the Indian middle-order batter in the squad. But the right-hander isn’t likely to get many chances with Ishan Kishan and KL Rahul expected to be preferred ahead of him.
Although Surykumar holds the top ranking in the T20I rankings, the explosive Indian batter had contrasting results in the ODI format so far. De Villiers felt Suryakumar needs only a mid shift to crack the ODI code.
“I am very relieved to see SKY in the World Cup squad, I’m very happy about it. You guys know I’m a big fan (of Suryakumar). He plays in a similar manner to how I used to play, but in ODIs, he hasn’t cracked it yet.
“It is a tiny little mind switch that he’s got to make, and he’s got all the ability and capabilities that he needs to do that. I hope he gets this opportunity in this World Cup. I’m not sure [if that will happen] yet. Looking at the balance of the Indian squad, he might not start. But the World Cup is a long tournament. So let’s see what happens then,” he added.
India are currently playing in the Asia Cup 2023 and will host Australia for a three-match ODI series just before the World Cup. They will also play two warm-up games before the World Cup against England and Netherlands.