While India reigned supreme at the Premadasa on Sunday, humbling defending champions Sri Lanka by 10 wickets to lift their 8th Asia Cup, former international cricketer Atul Wassan said the 'Men in Blue' are not the "hot favourites" going into the ODI World Cup next month.
The 50-over showpiece, to be hosted in India this year, will get underway in less than a couple of weeks from now. Weighing in on India's chances to claim their third world crown after 2013 when a certain MS Dhoni led his boys to glory, Wassan said he believed that much of the team's prospects in the tournament would depend on the nature of the surfaces they play on and whether they build on their success in the Asia Cup. "We are ready for the World Cup.
The Indian fans believe that they are the hot favourites to lift the trophy this year. However, if our team goes into the tournament as the favourite and suffers an early exit, the fans will be left heartbroken as they have been over the last 13 years.
Hence, I believe it is best to temper our expectations while being cautiously optimistic about our chances. I think we are not the hot favourites.