Veteran West Indies pacer Ravi Rampaul believes that experience is a very crucial element when pressure situations arise in the game, and having experienced players in the T20 World Cup 2021 squad will help the Caribbean side.
He further said that the Caribbean players will share with each other the experience they gained while playing T20 leagues around the world during the ICC T20 World T20 2021 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the experienced bowler is ready to take tough responsibilities for the team.
With the T20 World Cup 2021 getting underway on Sunday, October 17 in the UAE, the West Indies will kick off their title defense against England on October 23 at the Dubai International Stadium and the pacer has pointed out that West Indies’ vast experience can help the side deal with the high-pressure situation in the ongoing T20 World Cup, as they are aiming to defend the title in the UAE.
As reported by ESPNcricinfo, Rampaul stated: “I think going into big World Cup games, you would need experience. The team that was selected has a lot of experienced guys and a lot of young guys as well - guys that have played around the world in different conditions. We know that the games come quick and fast.
The experienced guys, more so, will know how to manage themselves to play back-to-back games or play games every other day with recovery and getting stuff done. Yeah, the experience will help us throughout the tournament.”
The 36-year-old added, “Yeah, definitely see myself doing a top-tail role for the West Indies. I've done a lot of practice bowling in the three areas of T20 cricket and whatever situation I've to play for the West Indies, I'll try to do my best. I strive in the tough areas of the game to come out on top. So, whatever situation I'm put under, I'll try to come out on top.”
Rampaul, who marked his comeback in the CPL 2021, taking 19 wickets in 10 matches for Trinbago Knight Riders, was troubles by many injuries, but now he understands his body and has become wiser.
The pacer added, “My experience with Derbyshire will help lead the bowling line-up and there's Dwayne Bravo as well. We have a lot of guys who have been playing a lot of T20 franchise cricket around the world and we could feed off each other with our experience and when different situations in the game come up, we can come together and have a plan to go ahead.”
He concluded, “With the experience gained, I know exactly what my body needs to perform. At a younger age, I didn't know and I just wanted to continue playing cricket every day. But, with the experience gained, playing over the years, I know exactly how I need to train - the sort of gym and running work I need to do, so with that experience right now, I feel I'm a bit better at preparing for more games that way.”
(With ANI Inputs)
