Former West Indies Skipper Darren Sammy feels that any team which is dreaming of winning the T20 World Cup will have to get past India. (More Cricket News)
ICC, on Tuesday, announced the schedule for the T20 World Cup with India opening their campaign against their arch-rivals Pakistan on Oct 24
Former West Indies Skipper Darren Sammy feels that any team which is dreaming of winning the T20 World Cup will have to get past India. (More Cricket News)
Terming India as the strongest team, Sammy said Virat Kohli's side will be the team to beat when the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup starts in UAE and Oman.
India are grouped with Pakistan, New Zealand, Afghanistan and two qualifiers. The round 1 of the Super 12s for India will start with a clash against arch-rivals Pakistan.
"India is the team to beat. We have heard Dinesh Karthik talk about it - the experience, their T20 players come into the international cricket with, whether it is from India's domestic T20 cricket or the IPL, you see all the countries go there and get the experience," Sammy said on the Star Sports show Game Plan.
Sammy, 37, knows a thing or two about winning the T20 World Cups having won two as the captain of West Indies. The West Indies cricketer went on to add that ‘India has that formula.’
"In 2016, when we played the T20 World Cup, I said to the coach and all the guys that in order to win this tournament, you will have to go through India. Whatever stage it is, you will have to go through India, whether it is the final, the semi-final," he said.
"You will have to go through India in any tournament. As you have seen in the last few ICC tournaments, whether it is the Test Championship or ODI, you will have to go through India in order to win."
The T20 World Cup will be held between October 17 and November 14 in Oman and UAE with the Super12s stage starting on October 23.
India will then take on New Zealand on October 31 followed by Afghanistan on November 3.
India will then play their final two Super12 matches on November 5 and 7.
Prior to the T20 World Cup, BCCI will be hosting rescheduled Indian Premier League in UAE which Sammy says will help the Indian players get used to the conditions.