Decision to play entirely up to Sachin, says Robin

As is his wont, coach Robin Singh offered no clues, though in this instance, he actually had very little choice.

“We will know only tomorrow whether he is playing or not,” said the former India all-rounder. “It is up to him. He is very keen on playing, but it is his call. He is coming to practice today, though I don’t think he will practice.

“The decision eventually is Sachin’s,” Robin added. “I can’t ask him to play. The fact is that it is the final. He is someone who will it give his best shot to play the final.”
Robin added that the team was prepared for life without the master in the title clash. “We have kept that possibility in mind,” he observed.

“If he is not ready to play, we have alternate options as well. It will be great to have Sachin, but we are absolutely confident, whether he is able to play or not.”

Relative freshness

Despite its relative freshness, the DY Patil pitch hasn’t made for entertaining batsmanship. “The pitch is not a concern as far as we are concerned,” Robin observed.
“We have got to the finals with whatever combination we have played. Our attack has been based on fast bowlers. We have done whatever is necessary to win.

“We have had pretty good preparations. The young guys have delivered exceptionally well. The senior cricketers, as well as the international cricketers, have come to the forefront and delivered when it mattered.

“Obviously, people like Sachin, Zak and Harbhajan have lent their support as well.”
Attributing his team’s brilliant run – they have won 11 of their 15 matches so far – in this competition, the proud coach said, “We have played very good cricket. In this format of the game, it is important that you do equally well in all three departments.

“It is not just about any two aspects. We saw in the last match that the Deccan Chargers needed to get only 143, but they still lost.”