Kochi will bounce back, said Mahela. ( He did not specify when Kochi will bounce back, like Preity, who said that Punjab will turnaround ! ).
Kochi thought they could defeat formidable Bangalore. Kochi actually batted well for 161 and the opening pair put on 80, at 10 per over ! McCullum and Laxman, in dashing roles, batted superbly ! But the bowling let Kochi down. You have to understand that it was one of the best batsmen in the world, Bram DeVilliers, who was responsible for the Kochi defeat !
We, said the mighty Sri Lankan, learnt a lot from those matches. Tuskers have a lot of talent and I will have to jell them as a victorious unit. After the hectic schedule of the WC and IPL inaugural event, I could only arrive at the morning of the match. I feel happy at the way the Tuskers have practised and it is only a matter of time when they become a victorious unit !
We were happy at the way Brendon and VVS batted. Also at the way Brad Hodge and R Jadeja batted. Murali and Jadeja will form an excellent spin duo and Sreeshant, V Kumar and RP Singh will form a formidable pace trio. The way Sreeshant bowled sent raptures into the hearts of the Kochiites.
We are confident of taking on the Pune Warriors at the New Bombay Stadium and Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede. We are confident of victory !
We will concentrate on our strengths and talents, rather than think about the formidability of the opposition. Pune is led by the WC Man of the Tournament, Yuvraj and Mumbai by the second best scorer of the World Cup !
Sreeshant should stay aggressive, said Mahela. He does not want to curb the aggression of the temparamental fast bowler. Sreeshant, who bowled at 145 kph in the WC final, has vowed to bowl 150 kph in this IPL !
"I think you need to identify the individuals. Sree performs well in that manner. You take that from him and he might not do well. He's a very aggressive bowler but I have noticed he has toned down in the last one year. That's why he got to be a part of the India's World Cup squad." said the Kochi captain.
"We want him to be aggressive. I think that's what he is all about. You need characters like him. You had much more worse characters in international cricket in the last 20 years and I don't think Sree is that harmful to the game.
"But I think if we can control him and he has done well in doing that. We can have ourselves a very successful bowler for Kochi as well as for India. He is heading in the right direction as long as he is doing that."
Kochi Tuskers take on mighty Pune at the DY Patil Stadium in New Bombay today. The master Sri Lankan batsman said it is nice to have fiery characters like Sreesanth around as it helps relax the tension in the dressing room.
"Brilliant to have him; he just needs to reduce the volume in his i-Pod as well as the speakers. The boys have given him new songs to play. To that, we have some mixture going. We need that. With him and Murali around, nothing can go wrong for us."
"We have been bonding very well. We had a great last outing. I thought there would be many hiccups in our first game; that didn't happen. Everyone did really well. Everyone is identifying their roles and that is great. We have got a very good bunch of players.
"The local young Indian players too are very keen on improving themselves. Most of them are keen on getting in the national team and are working very hard. It's a good combination for us to have.
"We are trying to motivate the Indian players to perform well as it gives them an opportunity to get into the Indian team. Lot of these boys have done well in the last three IPLs. Whosoever has done well in the IPL got an opportunity to play for their national team.," said the formidable hitter.
No revenge against India is this Wed match, said the 33 year old and he is looking forward to an edge of the seat thriller.
"(Its) not a revenge match. That was India vs Sri Lanka. This is a different thing. I don't have such animosity with players. Off the field, we are good friends. On the field we are competitive. The final was a good match and we have to move on from that. I have done that.
"(Its) not only (about) Yuvi but the entire Pune Warriors. They looked very good the other day. They looked very aggressive, which is great, looking forward to their challenge. We are playing in their home ground. It should be a keen contest. Yuvi had a great World Cup. So we are definitely up for the challenge," the seasoned campaigner said.
Pune had faced a mediocre opposition in direct contrast to Kochi, who came up against an in from Bram Villiers.
"I think Kings XI had a very mediocre game and Pune took control of the game very well. For us, our game against Bangalore, it was a very competitive game. It was a close encounter. Probably two overs changed the game for us."
Regarding the pitch, the Emerald Isle emerald said, "We had a look at the wicket. We had a look even when they played. (It is a) very good wicket, good pace, good bounce. I think it throws a different challenge at you. But every wicket in the IPL throws a new challenge. That's the uniqueness of this tournament."
He said that captaining KTK is a daunting task indeed.
"For me obviously, auction made the change. Enjoyed my three years with Kings XI Punjab. But the new franchisee is a new challenge for me as captain."
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