CWI won’t underestimate Nepal, says Hosein
MUMBAI, India – West Indies left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein has promised that the regional team will not drop its guard when they come up against minnows Nepal in their crucial ICC Men’s T20 World Cup contest on Sunday (February 15).The unbeaten Windies sit atop Group C following wins over Scotland and England, and victory over Nepal will book their spot in the Super Six phase of the tournament.Hosein, however, will know first-hand that Nepal cannot be taken lightly. He led an under-strength West Indies side to the United Arab Emirates last September in a three-match T20I series against them, which they shockingly lost 2-1.
Nepal also came within one boundary of defeating England in their opening match of the World Cup, before agonisingly losing by four runs.Speaking in a pre-match press conference on Saturday (February 14) ahead of their clash at the Wankhede Stadium, Hosein said the Windies would not be underestimating Nepal.“I think you could see from the start of the tournament in the first round, most of the bigger teams were in a spot of bother, so in this World Cup it’s not one to take anyone lightly.
“Preparation is going to be the same, mindset is going to be the same, and it’s just about executing. At the end of the day, it’s a World Cup and these teams had to do what they had to do to get to the World Cup, so it’s not about taking anyone for granted. It’s about going out there and playing another cricket match against out opposition, not so much coming up against a name,” Hosein said.“…It’s no big team or no small team. At the end of the day, it’s who plays the best cricket on the day, and like I keep saying, that’s how we’re going to treat it.”
Hosein pointed out that despite their status as Associate Members, Nepal was a very capable unit.