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NEWS India-Australia-West Indies Tri-Series>Dravid wants his batsmen to fire in crucial game 21st Sept 2006 22.10 IST By Agencies Captain Rahul Dravid today put the onus on his batsmen to deliver the goods in the crucial tri-series match against Australia, saying the top six batsmen should strive to bat for 50 overs if India wanted to secure a place in the final. Dravid, who has not been in the best of form with a sequence of 26, 6 and 0, said he was determined to produce a big knock in the must-win match.
"It is pretty important for us. I am not really trying to think about anything else. After a splendid performance in their opening match against the West Indies , in which they posted 309/5 with Sachin Tendulkar leading from the front with an unbeaten 141, the Indian batting has floundered in the last two games. They were reduced to 35/5 in their last meeting against the Aussies before rain came to their rescue. And they were bundled out for 162 yesterday by a second string West Indian bowling. "The top six or seven batsmen should play 50 overs. That will be our aim. It would be nice for a lot of guys to score runs, and personally as well," Dravid said. "We will focus on playing good cricket. If we fulfill our target of good bowling, batting and fielding the result will be there. We are not going to put extra pressure on ourselves." Tomorrow's tie would be a virtual semi-final with the winners qualifying for the final on Sunday. Australia have seven points and India six from three matches each so far. That would mean a 'no result' due to rains would also see Australia through. West Indies have already confirmed their place in the summit clash, having tallied 9 points from their four matches. "It is a critical game... The Champions Trophy is coming up... And there will be lot of important challenges in the season ahead starting with the game tomorrow," the Indian captain said. Dravid sought to play down fitness concerns about Yuvraj Singh and Ajit Agarkar . Suresh Raina was promoted to number three slot against the West Indies yesterday because Yuvraj was unwell. The Punjab left-hander was ill coming into the series and joined the team four days after his teammates had arrived here on Sep 10. Agarkar also seemed to be feeling the strains of the tropical heat but Dravid said they both were not ruled out for tomorrow's match yet. "Hopefully they (Yuvraj and Agarkar) should be fit tomorrow," he said. Dravid said yesterday's win over West Indies was crucial for his team in more than one way. "To come back strongly showed a lot of resilience and character. It also showed the areas of the game we can work on," he said adding it was the first full game India got to play. The Kinrara wicket has proved to be quite deceptive. Dravid felt that the wicket could be judged only tomorrow morning. "It looks a good wicket, though it is hard to judge," he said. "Most of these wickets had a bit of moisture in them a day before. Hopefully with the sun out tomorrow it should dry out, it should be a good wicket." Asked to comment on Glenn Donald McGrath , the Indian skipper said it was important to play all the Australian bowlers well. "I don't think we can focus just on McGrath or Brett Lee , we have to play well right through 50 overs." He cited the example of West Indian Dwayne Smith who ripped through the Indian batting lineup yesterday. "You wouldn't have thought about him that much as being one of your strike bowlers who can remove the top order but he did it, so it just shows that if you bowl in the right areas anyone can be a threat." Also View In-Depth Coverage: India-Australia-West Indies Tri-Series Team Page: India Team Page: Australia | LIVE CRICKET COVERAGE NEWS ~ Gilchrist has no plans to retire after World Cup ~ Ganguly's new batting approach may cost him sixer record ~ India 'squash the Orange' in World Cup warm-up game ~ Symonds gets a new hairdo for World Cup ~ Dhoni readies himself for stand-up act at World Cup (more in NEWS) FACE-TO-FACE ~ 500-mark a possibility in World Cup: Hayden ~ Minnows add charm to World Cup: Dravid (more in FACE-TO-FACE) COLUMNS ~ Will Sri Lanka replicate 1996 World Cup success? (more in COLUMNS) OFF-THE-FIELD ~ Ganguly again the darling of corporate world ~ Ganguly roped in as brand ambassador of Puma (more in OFF-THE-FIELD) PLAYERS Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble (more PLAYERS) TEAMS India, South Africa, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Australia, West Indies, Zimbabwe, England, New Zealand, Bangladesh, Kenya, Holland | 
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