Team India will be keen to remain unbeaten at the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup and head into the knockout stage of the tournament full of momentum when they host the Netherlands in Bengaluru on Nov 12.

India have taken all before them so far at the World Cup, having rarely been troubled on their way to eight wins from eight matches, reports ICC.

It looks like a clash between David and Goliath with the Netherlands languishing on the bottom of the standings, but it would be unwise for the tournament hosts to underestimate the Dutch.

The talented Netherlands outfit showed they are up to the class when they upset South Africa earlier in the tournament and their victory over Bangladesh was equally impressive.

They will however need all their star players to be at their best to topple India, with the performances of Bas de Leede, Max O'Dowd, Logan van Beek and skipper Scott Edwards to be pivotal to their hopes.

The Netherlands too have their own lure, with a victory likely to move them into the top eight places on the standings and one of the qualification spots for the ICC Champions Trophy in 2025.

No plans to rest any player: Rahul Dravid

India’s chief coach Rahul Dravid has said they don’t have plans to rest first-choice players and give a chance to those on the bench.

“I mean, honestly, we've had six days off from the last game. So, we're pretty well rested and the guys are in good shape. That's all I'll say without giving away the level. So, we've had six days off, we've got one game before the semi-final. The boys are rested. So that's all I'll say,” said Dravid in the pre-match press conference before Sunday's match against the Netherlands.

Asked how they would try to maintain a balance between putting up a strong playing XI and keeping players on the bench ready for any eventuality, Dravid said currently their focus is on choosing the best possible playing XI.

“So now at this stage, it's about just focusing on getting the guys who you think are going to be playing in the 11 in the best possible space mentally and physically to be able to play that semifinal and hopefully the final if we earn it.”

“So that will be the single-pointed thinking it's not about there are times there are times for larger picture thinking and there are times for narrow focus thinking in my opinion and now's the time for sure narrow focus thinking if everyone is fit,” he said.

India vs Netherlands squads

India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishan Kishan, Prasidh Krishna, Suryakumar Yadav.

Netherlands: Scott Edwards (c), Max O'Dowd, Bas de Leede, Vikram Singh, Teja Nidamanuru, Paul van Meekeren, Colin Ackermann, Roelof van der Merwe, Logan van Beek, Aryan Dutt, Noah Croes, Wesley Barresi, Saqib Zulfiqar, Shariz Ahmad, Sybrand Engelbrecht.

(Source: IANS)

-Edited for style

For more such updates and news on the go, follow us on Instagram | YouTube | Facebook