India's stand-in captain Rahul Dravid on Saturday put up a bold face ahead of the final One-Day International against Pakistan, saying there would be no undue pressure on his players who had the potential to tie the six-match series.
Dravid said the three consecutive defeats would not affect the confidence level of the team which will try out some different strategies to contain Pakistan who have an unasailable 3-2 lead.
"It is not nice to lose three games in a row. We have played some good cricket during the series and we just need to have a good day on the field. The boys are confident of doing it," Dravid said at a pre-match press conference.
"We lost the last game because of the exceptional knock of (Shahid) Afridi. That made all the difference, if we can get Afridi out early, it will help us. We believe it will be a close contest, the team that plays better on the day will win," he said.
Dravid said his team will have to sort out the weak areas in the bowling department. "We have done well in the first 15 overs in batting in most of the matches, but in bowling it has hurt us. We have tried out different strategies but it has not worked. I can say that it is not because of a lackadisical attitude."
{{/usCountry}}Dravid said his team will have to sort out the weak areas in the bowling department. "We have done well in the first 15 overs in batting in most of the matches, but in bowling it has hurt us. We have tried out different strategies but it has not worked. I can say that it is not because of a lackadisical attitude."
{{/usCountry}}"You really can't do anything if somebody bats like Afridi (did). You just have to clap for a good knock," he said.
Asked whether the team will miss the services of Sourav Ganguly for the crucial tie, Dravid said, "At the end of the day, 15 guys are selected to do the job. People miss matches because of injuries. Everybody is keen to do well."
Dravid also did not agree that the Indians were going a little too defensive in the first 15 overs while bowling. "I don't think we have been going too defensive. It is not our strategy. We just assess the situation and see how we should play."
On the track at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground which has not really been tested, the Karnataka batsman said: "The pitch will be the same for both the teams. We will go and have a look. I can't say how it will play without seeing in, but as I said it will the same for both the teams. No team will have an advantage or disadvantage."