Sport

Give due credit to team: Dhoni

Sydney: Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said his young team should be given credit for reaching the CB tri-series finals. “A lot of people had written us off before the competition. They should now look at how this young team has fought,” he said. The Indian captain added it was important to create pressure against the Aussies. “We should do that to force mistakes,” he said.

Dhoni added the side should not be desperate to win. “Sometimes desperation creates the pressure. We have to be relaxed and stick to the basics.”

The skipper said his team would concentrate on cricket rather than words. “I am not against aggression on the field as long as we do not cross the line. But we will be focussed with what we have to accomplish on the field. We will be concentrating on how we bat, bowl, field and run between the wickets. We have shown improvement in all areas.

“Winning is important, but winning is not everything,” said the Indian skipper. He has been a source of great strength for this side with his leadership, resilient batting and safe glovework.

Australia’s Michael Hussey said the host would look more at its last batting performance at the SCG where the team went past the 300-run mark than the collapse at the MCG. “The wicket at the MCG has been difficult for the batsmen all season,” he said. “But we did extremely well here the last time around.” The left-handed batsman, who has been a part of several Aussie fightbacks in the series along with Michael Clarke, said he would like to “bury the past (verbal duels)” and focus on what the side needed to do in the finals. “I think the two teams and the public have had enough of these incidents,” he said.

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