Mumbai: Having played for more than a decade in the Indian Premier League (IPL) South Africa cricket legend AB de Villiers has played with and against the current members of the squad that is representing India in the Men’s T20 World Cup currently going on in Australia.
That is the reason why de Villiers, with his home country South Africa failing to reach the semifinals, wants to see India in win the T20 World cup title — by beating Pakistan in the final.
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“I would like to see India win, obviously against Pakistan, it is the biggest final in the town. India’s biggest obstacle I think will be the semifinal," de Villiers told the media on the sidelines of a press conference to announce the Last Man Stands India Super League to be held in March next year.
However, the Royal Challengers Bangalore legend feels England will pose a big test for India in Thursday’s semifinal clash.
England’s a very dangerous team. I think they have everything in the artillery to win the World Cup. So, if India can get past them, I feel they will handle it well when they get into the final."
De Villiers said the semifinals will be a big test for Rohit Sharma’s team, having been himself involved in a couple of such occasions.
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“I have played in two World Cup semifinals and I know how difficult it is. It’s a pressure situation and you win some and you lose some," the 38-year-old said.
On Monday, de Villiers ran a poll on his Twitter handle asking fans to vote on which teams they want to see in the final and an overwhelming number voted for an India vs Pakistan clash. Pakistan play New Zealand in the first semifinal on Wednesday.
He picked the in-form batters Suryakumar Yadav and Virat Kohli as the key for India.
“Surya is in good form, Virat is in good form. So, it will come down to the bowlers in the big game and if they all do well in the big game, I see India playing in the final and India winning," de Villiers said.
He was, however, not that happy with the current format of the T20 World Cup and says the format should provide more chances to the teams.
“There should be more matches for the team. If you have 10 teams, they show play nine matches. At this moment, one bad match means the team is out," The former South Africa captain said.
He suggested an IPL-style format in the final stages of the World Cup with Eliminator and challenger matches so that teams get more than one chance of reaching the final.
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