On the eve of the first ODI against India in Ahmedabad, West Indies skipper Kieron Pollard said the hosts will have their task cut out in the 50-over series as they are coming off a 0-3 whitewash in South Africa and "all the other things on the outside".
By "all other things on the outside", Pollard referred to the controversy around Virat Kohli's departure from the captaincy in all three formats.
"As you mentioned they (India) didn't do too well in South Africa, and with all the other things on the outside, they will have their work cut out," Pollard said on Saturday (February 5).
"But as I stated earlier for us, it is about focusing on what we can do, they will have their challenges, we will have our challenges. The good thing is that when we start the game tomorrow, there is no advantage or disadvantage. We start on a level-playing field and whoever plays better cricket on the day will come out on the top," he added.
Pollard also praised the leadership skills of Rohit Sharma, who will begin his full-time ODI captaincy stint from the West Indies series.
Notably, Pollard has played under Rohit’s captaincy in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI).
"Obviously, Rohit, you know, a good person, he knows how to lead, but having said that he will be coming (up) with his own plans and the way that he wants to play, wants the team (to) sort of play, so that will be learning for them (India) as well. Because yes, you have captained a couple of games but when you are a full-time captain, I think that is something sort-of different."
During their last visit to India in 2019, West Indies had lost the three-match ODI series 2-1.
"We will see what is the best combination and try to come up with the best resources we have. Touring India is always going to be difficult, there is media pressure and (so on). We need to focus on what we want to do and share the information among ourselves. The last time we were here, we did okay. We didn't win the series but we pushed them. It's time to get one step further," Pollard concluded.
(With PTI inputs)
