Time to put emotions behind and focus on the match: ten Doeschate Today Sports News

On the eve of India’s Asia Cup clash against Pakistan at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday, assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate admitted that the team was uncertain about the fate of the continental event after the military conflict between the neighbours in May. But now that the encounter against Pakistan is just a few hours away, the message in Saturday’s team meeting was to put the emotions behind and approach an important match just as they would do otherwise.

“It is a very sensitive issue. I have no doubt the players share the compassion and feeling of the vast majority of the Indian public,” ten Doeschate told reporters on Saturday. “The Asia Cup was in limbo for a long period of time and we were just waiting. We didn’t think we were going to be coming at one stage. But obviously, you know what the government stance is. Now the team, particularly the players, has to put its sentiments and emotions behind. It’s actually something we addressed in the team meeting today.”

When reminded about the instances when the sporting arena was used to register a protest, ten Doeschate was tactful in his response.

“I guess the other side of the argument is that you separate sports from politics and people have got different opinions on that. Hopefully the way we play can represent how we feel about the country,” the Dutchman said.

In May, coach Gautam Gambhir had said, in his personal opinion, India should not play Pakistan even at neutral venues. But the Indian government has since stated that it will not take a hardline stance in multi-nation events.

“The waiting period of knowing whether this was going to happen was probably the most frustrating part. Gauti’s message has just been very professional about not worrying about things that are not in our control,” said the 45-year-old.