Indian cricket team arrives in West Indies

The visitors landed at the Norman Manley International Airport in Jamaica on Friday without key players Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan.

But captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was confident his team had the wherewithal to challenge the inconsistent West Indies as they play the first two matches at Sabina Park on June 26 and 28. The next two matches would be played in St Lucia on July 3 and 5.

“When it comes to playing for your country you don’t really need motivation to go out and perform. West Indies is playing good cricket at the moment. They are having a very good (World) 20/20 tournament, but in the 50 overs, you have time to settle down,” said Dhoni.

“After playing so many T20 games, 50 overs seems like a Test match,” quipped Dhoni.
Coach Gary Kirsten, who said fatigue and injuries resulted in India’s failure in the World T20, admitted the experienced players would be missed but said it was the time for youngsters to seize the opportunity.

“You’re always going to miss them because they are great players, but it’s a great opportunity for a tour of this nature for young players to show what they’re made of,” said Kirsten.

“We’re looking to those young players for the future as well. This is a great opportunity for these guys to stake their claim.”

Tendulkar opted out of the tour as he wanted rest while both Zaheer and Sehwag were injured.