Vijay Zol, captain of the India under-19 side, said on Wednesday that the team was enjoying the pressure of being the defending champions going into the World Cup in UAE next month.
“Of course, there are expectations and we have won the World Cup and we have been really doing well in the past few tournaments but that does not put any kind of pressure on us, we are enjoying it. We are the defending champions and that is a great feeling for us so there is no kind of pressure on us,” said Zol during the second day of the preparatory camp here at the Chinnaswamy stadium.
India had recently won the Asia Cup at the same venue, and Zol stressed that the familiarity factor would give India a distinct advantage. “We have done well in the Asia Cup in Dubai and the World Cup is at the same venue and so we are looking forward to it. We have a good feel about the conditions there and it is good that we won the Asia Cup there and we are preparing well for the World Cup,” added Zol.
Zol also expressed happiness over the fact that the team has been spending a lot of days together in the last few months during various tournaments. “Yeah, that works because we know each other really well. We know the strength and short-comings of each other and as a captain I know how I can take the best out of every player. Personally, I am also aware of my role in the team,” said Zol.
Zol has played a big role in getting Maharashtra into the final of this year’s Ranji Trophy and he was understandably elated. “It was a dream to be part of the Ranji Trophy team and in my first season to reach the final is a big achievement for me and for the team, after 21 years we are in the final.
We have done well in all the three departments. The team looks in good nick and we are hopeful for the final too.” Zol, however, would miss the final from January 29 at Hyderabad as BCCI refused to release him from the World Cup camp that runs till February 6.
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