Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara says India will be under more pressure – ICC World Cup 2011 final
Sri Lanka cricket team captain Kumar Sangakkara has said that the pressure will be on India in Saturday’s final of the ICC World Cup 2011.
The wicketkeeper batsman said that the home side will carry the burden of expectations when they enter the Wankhede Stadium in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Mumbai-c820 as they bid to lift the second World Cup in their cricket history.
“It cuts both ways I think,” said Sangakkara when asked about the pressure of a big game. “Playing in front of your home crowd adds to the excitement, the passion and the pride that you feel. But the weight of expectation, when you feel
that crowd looking at you to do everything right, is also tough.”
The Sri Lankan Lions have played all of their ICC World Cup 2011 matches at home except one against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750 would take some of the pressure off from his players.
The Wankhede Stadium has a capacity of more than 45,000 spectators and is expected to be jam-packed on Saturday with a vast majority cheering for team India. Sangakkara feels this added pressure would work in their favour.
Sangakkara played down the suggestion that his side would be underdogs in the first-ever all-Asia World Cup final. However, he did opine that India would be under more pressure to prove its status of pre-tournament hot favourites.
“Everyone in the world expects (India) to turn up tomorrow and win this game,” said the wicketkeeper batsman who has been outstanding with the bat in the ICC World Cup 2011. “We have to understand the fact that India for the last year or
two years have been tagged as the favorites by almost everyone to win the World Cup.”
Sangakkara was sure the hosts would also be looking at themselves as hot favourites and said that they would try their absolute best to win the high-profile tournament.
Both India and Sri Lanka have won one World Cup each and would be contesting for their second title on Saturday. India won the title back in 1983 while http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 won the trophy in 1996.
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