Quality of batsmen would make India very hard to beat: Ryan Harris

Former Australia pacer Ryan Harris feels that India would have to deal with the raging expectations from home fans but will thrive in home conditions at 2016 World Twenty20.

According to former Australian paceman Ryan Harris, the tournament will provide plenty of excitement considering the fact that most teams will boast players with experience of India pitches having being part of the Indian Premier League.

However, the quality of India’s batsmen would make the hosts very hard to beat and ensure opposing bowlers were in for a rough ride, Harris, who retired from all cricket last year, told Reuters on Tuesday.

“Having been there and experienced it and watched those guys, they’re unbelievable in those conditions,” said the 36-year-old, who played five IPL tournaments from 2009-13 with the Deccan Chargers and Kings XI Punjab.

“You bowl a good ball and you walk back and think ‘how has that gone there? Exactly where he wanted to put it’. And that’s what you’ve got to accept as a bowler in those conditions, particularly over there,” he added.

“You can’t really target any of their guys. They bat down to seven or eight, you’ve got to make sure you’ve got them all covered.

“It’s a bit like Australia in the World Cup last year. When you’re playing at home, the expectations are obviously quite high.”

“They’re going to have billions of people watching it and there’s pressure and all that stuff but you know you’re in your own conditions and there’s no better place to play at. To play India in India will be very, very hard.”

Harris also stated that Pakistan would pose as the biggest threat to India’s hopes of becoming the first team to win a second World T20.

He felt less bullish about his home nation’s chances of winning the only piece of global silverware still to elude them, however.

“The guys only come together a couple of days before a T20 match. Obviously they play each other and know each other really well, but to get that proper team environment needs more than a couple of days or a couple of matches to get used to the format, know each other and get good at it,” he says.

Harris, who recently expressed his desire of becoming the bowling consultant of Australia, also felt that South Africa tour was an unusual warm-up tour ahead of the World T20. The Aussies are currently tied at 1-1 in the three-match series.

“Why go to South Africa when we’re going to a totally different place? I heard (captain) Steve Smith’s comments that it would have benefited both sides if they prepared slow, low wickets in South Africa, but they’re not going to do that because people want to see what they saw the other night,”

“I’m unsure why they had to go there. We’re going from bouncy, fast tracks to the slower, lower wickets over there (in India),” said Harris