Kishan goes crazy as India hammer Pakistan

This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. The best B2B marketing gets wasted on the wrong people. So when you want to reach the right professionals, use LinkedIn ads. LinkedIn has grown to a network of over 1 billion professionals, including 130 million decision makers. And that's where it stands apart from other ad buyers. You can target your buyers by job title, industry, company role, seniority, skills, company revenue so you can stop wasting budget on the wrong audience. It's why LinkedIn Ads generates the highest B2B return on ad spend of major ad networks. Spend $250 on your first campaign on LinkedIn Ads and get $250 credit for the next one. Just go to LinkedIn.com Broadcast that's LinkedIn.com Broadcast. Terms and conditions apply.

Finding a hoodie that lasts through the season can be tough. The American Giant Classic Full Zip hoodie.

Is made to last a lifetime so.

You can count on it year after year. Every American Giant piece is made in.

America and designed to exceptions.

The result is durable clothing that become.

Part of your life. Snag the hoodie that will bring you comfort for life.

The American giant classic full zip save 20 off your first order at american-giant.com when you use code staple20 at checkout.

You're listening to the TMS podcast from BBC Radio 5 live.

Hardik into Usman Tariq Bolder. Middle stump from Hardik. He had one ball to dismiss him and he used one ball to perfection. India register a huge win over Pakistan. They win by 61 runs having bowled out Pakistan for 114 with two overs remaining. A sensational win. India victorious here in Colombo by 61 runs.

So in the fixture that we wondered whether it would happen at all between India and Pakistan, last minute diplomatics meant that we did get a game, but it's same old same old this time at the R. Premadasar Stadium in Colombo. Pakistan being thrashed by India. India winning by 61 runs. And at no point in today's game did they ever really look like coming close to India. Pakistan from the very outset, brilliant batting from Ishan Kishan, the standout player with the bat today and then with the ball. Well, I don't know whether it was the bowling itself that was so particularly skilled or some of the top order batting that was so inept. Welcome. Alex Hartley is alongside me as is Atif Nawaz. We are going to chew the cud and try and work out what on earth has happened there. What? What has happened? First headline is that India have Won three out of three. They're through the next round. There was never any danger of that. In all probability Pakistan will be too if they win their last game against Namibia, which they surely will do. If they don't, however, they will be behind the United States on net run rate. It's even a tiny sniff of possibility for the Netherlands if they could beat India. But that's going to happen. So there is something big on that game for Pakistan and I don't think anyone really considered that to be a dangerous fixture for Pakistan. Artif but after watching the way they played today, I was hugely disappointed as hugely disappointed with how they bowled Ishan Kishan. They did drag it back in those middle overs with the ball but then with the bat how they found themselves 34 for 4, 13 for 3 in double quick time that that did for their chase. Chase they needed to make a 176 the highest chase it would have been in a World cup match T20 World cup match between these two men's sides. But nonetheless it felt like a pretty lived performance.

It really did. I think it's fair to say that this Pakistan team didn't play to their potential. They're a lot better than that, particularly their top four who would have really fancied their chances despite the fact that they let India get about 20 runs too many. Shaheen of really very expensive with the ball today. Just couldn't find anywhere to hide. 15 run off his off his two. 15 and a half runs off his two overs. A so 31 from his spell altogether and Shadab, also expensive went for 17. Salman Alaga with many options with the ball used seven bowlers in total. He was given good performances by Usman Dari S. You and himself bow pretty admirably. You're going to league run somewhere against India I suppose at 175 they did let them get away 20 more. Perhaps they felt the need to overcompensate when they came out to B. Not even overcompensate but compensate for that when they came out about their top four and they sort of played all. All manner.

Yeah. Thank you very much. I'm down here with Ishan Kishan is the man of the match. I'll ask Kavita Singh, senior vice president.

President of Aramco to please hand over a fabulous award for absolute fabulous innings.

77 today.

That's got to feel amazing.

Isan 100%. I think the wicket was not that easy in the beginning but you know sometimes you just have to believe what you want to Play what shots are on and you have to just focus on your strength. So I was just keeping it simple and you know, watching the ball and playing with the field, maybe making, making, trying to make them run as much as they can. But yeah, I think it worked pretty well in my side.

Everything looks this completely in sync.

Your hands look magnificent. Today you favoured the offside a little more than you have in other tournaments.

Was that something that was.

Yeah.

You had a new game plan. I think I did work a lot on my offside game. You know it will give me the balls where I want them to bowl if I play good shots on offside. So I was just trying to hit the gaps because it's a big boun and you know when it's a big ground you get bigger gaps. So I was just trying to keep it simple. Like I said, trying to hit the gaps, trying to at least take two runs because you know wicket was not easy and you know I had that in mind that we need to put like total like 160, 170 runs and it will be a very good total for us. Ishan, the lead up to this match.

Is enormous from both camps I'm sure.

Lots of pressure, lots of anxiety.

Do you feel now that there's a sense of relief now moving into the back half?

I think, you know, India versus Pakistan, it's always a special game not only for us, for, for our country as well. So you know we had to win this one. It was more a very important game and you know they had a pretty good spinners in their side and we were just supposed to, you know, play the good shots and yeah, winning this against Pakistan team, you know, it will give us a lot of confidence going ahead in the tournament and you know we'll try to just keep the momentum going. A quick word on Jaspreet Bura and Hardik Panya. In those first five overs I think they bowled tremendously well. You know pace bowlers. When I was batting, when Shaheen was bow, I didn't feel like the ball was doing much for the pace bowlers. But at the same times, look at same time looking at them both, two beautiful overs. So yeah it was a plus point for us and especially we know how Jassy can bowl, whether he has new ball in his hand and whether he's bowling in the death overs. And especially credit goes to Hardik Pandya for keeping it on the tight areas. You know, bowling what we planned before the game and executing his plans pretty well. Special day. Ishan. Congratulations mate. And good luck for the rest of the tournament. Thank you so much. Thank you.

That was Matthew Hayden talking to the player of the match and he really did bat better Alex Hardy than anybody else on show today. I mean his numbers are just head and shoulders above everybody else. 77 off 40 balls, 10 fours, three sixes. There are only three further sixes in India's innings. He managed to keep the strike farm the strike. And you saw how hard it was for the likes of tilak varma, 25 or 24. Surya Kumayan of the skipper, usually explosive, 32 or 29. So it was a tricky pitch, wasn't it? And he made it look easy.

I think it was. When Syma Yadav was struggling, I was like, okay, that's a special innings because he, he came out and he found the boundary from ball one. Yes. He was eased into his innings because Shaheen Shah, Freddy didn't bowl too well at him. You know, his first over went for 15 in the power play ball, the second one of the power play. But he was the only batter who could time the ball on that surface. And I think for him to recognize that or recognize that he was on and just carry on was very impressive.

It started pretty well for Pakistan, by which I mean at the first over. Yeah, when Salman Aliaga, the skipper brought himself on to bowling. We've seen a few different bowling plans on Pakistan. They are a flexible outfit which should stand them in good stead for other challenges later in the tournament. And he picked up the wicket of Abhishek Sharma really early on to that stage. One for one, end of the first over, you're thinking game on. Crowds gone berserk. Atmosphere is amazing. Place is completely packed. And you, you didn't hear silence because although there's about 80% Indian fans, about 20 Pakistan fans, so they made their presence really felt. But it was in that partnership which dominated Bishan Kishan 87. They put on in 7.4 over of which Ishan scored 76. I mean, I don't want to belabor the point, but it was where he was hitting it. Matthew Aid was talking about accessing the offside. Some of his leg side sixes were enormous. Did Pakistan bowl badly at him or did he just have one of those inspired days?

I think they were bad, but I think Shaheen Shah Afridi bowled badly. I don't think he's bowled well at all in this tournament. He definitely doesn't look at his best. He couldn't nail his yorker. He was either too full in the slot or he was too short, so I don't think he necessarily bowled well. And then there was probably one or two bad balls and over there was a few outside the off stump where. I'm sorry, if you've got the covers up in the power play, you're gonna get cut for four as a spinner and everybody knows that, you know, a bra in particular was, was really expensive, unusually expensive for him. I think he was one of the best spin bowlers in the world. Just couldn't quite get it right today. So I think Ishan Kishan, with the way he was batting also, also made Pakistan bowl poorly, if that makes sense.

Yeah, I mean, Abra was a massive disappointment for me. 3 overs for 38. He was taken to the cleaners. I'm going to try to find some crumbs of comfort, some kernels of hope because this tournament is far from over for Pakistan. We've mentioned it already. They beat Namibia. They've got three more games to play in the Super Eights with a real chance of getting through the semi finals. Playing on pitches like today's race really turned. There was some extravagant turn, especially for Sai Myoub who bowled really well today, Atif. And so Pakistan's game plan of having those spinners is not a bad one and could yet come to fruition here in Sri Lanka. It's just that in the immediate aftermath of everything else that happened in the game. I know it's hard to see that, but, you know, it's not all doom and gloom, is it? Or, or is it? Your face is suggesting it is.

No, no, I'm just very hot, Daniel, because the AC is off in this room.

Yeah, sorry about that.

That's. Yeah.

We're gonna have to find some kind of AC balance here. But it's going to be difficult for this Pakistan team because it's going to be quite brutal, the post mortem back home and you know, there's going to be a really negative reaction to this. Despite the fact that, as you said, they still have a very strong chance of making it through to the Super Eights and indeed to the semi finals because they have a really good combination. Their spinners, their attack, their balance, it kind of fits this tournament perfectly. What they have to try and keep in mind is they've just played the best team in the world who've come in and put in a very clinical performance. I feel like India has some kind of psychological hold over Pakistan. Perhaps that head to head record, not just in World Cups but In all T20s Pakistan having only won three of the 17 matches they've played against each other in T20 internationals, that's starting to become something that really weighs heavily on Pakistan's minds and perhaps creating the kind of pressure that doesn't allow them to actually play to their potential. They're constantly looking to compensate in those big moments. I felt like that's Shaheen's big problem as well. He's trying to compensate. Every time he gets hit for a six, he tries to come back and do something even more complex and world bending when really he just needs to.

Yes. First up to talk to Salman Aliyaga, captain of Pakistan. Salman, commiserations on the loss. Can you break it all down tactically for me?

Yeah, I think we were believing over spinners and they had an off day today. The execution was missing in some, some parts of the game. But yeah, we were, we were obviously going to always believe our spinners because they have, they have done really well last six months. And with the batting, I think we didn't start well. And in T2D games, if you lost like three or four wickets in power play, you always chasing a game.

Having watched the three games prior to this that have been played here with the teams batting first, managing to get a score and then defend it, and also with the teams batting second being bowled out, what was it you discussed with your troops yourself, Hessen and everyone that said batting second would be the way to go?

I think, to be very honest, like in first inning it was a bit tacky. It was. The ball was gripping as well, so the execution was, I think, missing when it comes to bowling, but I think the pitch better played better in the second inning than first inning. But our bowlers, like, we didn't bowl according to the situation and when it comes to batting, we didn't apply to ourselves and gave us chance to go deep in the game.

Is there anything to be said about this being a big occasion that has you and your team kind of trying to deal with emotions as well on the day?

In these kind of games, the emotions are always going to be high. We just need to deal with that because we have played enough cricket and we have played enough these games, games like that. So it's just we need to gather ourselves very quickly and we have a game in two day times, we need to look forward for that as well.

And still kind of look ahead to the rest of the tournament because this isn't the end, is it?

Yeah. Obviously you have to see the bigger picture. We have a game in two Day times. We need to win that game and qualify for the Super 4. And then it's a new tournament start again.

Okay, well, all the best with that new start.

Thank you very much.

Captain of Pakistan, Salman Ali Agha. Now time to speak to Surya Kumar Yadav, the victorious captain, captain of India. Surya, what about the victory today impresses you most?

I think this is for India, but yeah, it's completely. We played the same brand of cricket, what we wanted to play, I told you at the toss as well. I think batting first was a better option on this wicket. And the way Ishan batted and he was batting in the last few games and also in the domestic circuit, he batted the same way and took the team ahead.

In coming here, there was obviously the understanding it would be different, it would be a slow pitch. Was the plan to attack in the way that he did?

Not really. We wanted to play the same way. How we were playing. I think Ishan Ishan thought something out of the box. After 0 for 1, there had to be someone taking responsibility in the power play. And the way he took that responsibility, I think it was amazing. I think we were very ahead in the power play. There was a little bit of lump in between seven to 15, but then that, that's the beauty of T20 cricket. And the way Tilak Shivam and Rinku batted, I think it was commendable.

175 you get on the board. How many above par did you guys feel that was?

See, it's difficult to tell when we are batting first because you never know. There might be a little bit of dew or we might play a little better under lights. But as soon as we reached 175, we thought it was 15, 20 runs above par. I think 155 would have been a very tight game, but then 175 was a very good score.

And the ploy with how to attack them with ball, what was the discussion?

No, I think we followed the same thing, what we did before when we played them. Bahadik took the new ball, taking charge from ball one. Then Bumra coming in. What he does the best, he showed the world why he's the best bowler in the world. And then Warun Kuldeep Aksar, as a matter of the fact, Tilak as well, coming in, chipping in. I think it was. It was great to see everyone contributing.

How do you keep the run going all the way back from winning the trophy back in Barbados? You continue to go on. How do you ensure that this keeps going?

We'll Think about that tomorrow. First we'll go back, have some good time together as a team. And then when we take the flight tomorrow, reach Ahmedabad, we'll start thinking about the next games.

Well done today. Congratulations on the win.

Thank you.

So a couple of little things have come out of that for me. Surya Kumoyadav, slightly difference of opinion there between him and Salman Aliaga who thought that batting first was a good idea, that the numbers suggest, well, Pakistan lost by 61 runs. Sounds like it was a good idea. But actually if you quiz the movement on the pitch, there was a lot more spin in that first innings. I think that it was the right decision to bowl first. The pitch actually did play a little bit easier in the second half and it's just that Pakistan did not execute very well with the bat at all.

They didn't. But the games that have played on here, teams have won batting first and defending. So you sort of India have looked at that and gone, okay, it might not be what we would usually do because like Sura Kumar was just saying that there is that risk the Jew might come in, it might skid on, it won't do as much. And it didn't do do as much. But they had the runs on the board. It's such a vast outfield. Boundaries aren't that easy to come by. We've seen that throughout the competition. So actually having runs on the board gives you a little bit of a buffer. But Pakistan should have been better because the ball was definitely doing more in the first innings.

It really was. And we were looking at that thinking, right, that the big threats are going to be Warun Chakravarti, Kuldeep Yadov, Aksha Patel, especially bowling at the pace that he did bowl at or does bowl at. The problem for Pakistan was that they were blown away by Hardik Pandya and Jaspreet Bumra. Now, anybody can be blown away by Jaspreet Bumrah and Hardik Pandya is a very fine bowler who is getting up to 86 miles an hour. But some of the batting in those first three or four overs, Atif will have incensed Pakistan fans and indeed just fans of neutral fans who wanted to see a tight game. And I don't know where to start. I almost want to start at the end of the collapse, which was Baba Azam who played a wild heave to Akshar Patel when he's been criticized for being too much of the glue. This was the moment at 34 for 3 when he needed to be a bit Gluey. Yeah. And he plays a wild swing across the line. He's seen his captain chipper ball up in the air. He's seen Farhan get out to a pretty limp shot early on. That was a time for him to actually lean into his strengths, wasn't it?

It certainly was. But I'd rather, if I may, just sort of start at the beginning with Saib Zaid Al Farhan who's coming into this game. A lot of the build up about this game was going to be the battle between Sahib Sada Farhan and Jaspreet Bumra. Cuz Sab Faran, you know, memorably took him to task in the Asia cup last year, became one of the first batters to really dominate Jaspreet Bumra. There was a lot of buildup about that on our coverage. We had Nagraj who was talking about that as well and then it never came to fruition because sort of ball after facing three dot balls, he seemed to just crumble under pressure. Played this sort of wild cross battered shots, you know, easy catch and he was dismissed early. Pakistan immediately on the back foot. Salman Aliaga did something similar. Sima, you was sort of trapped by just breed Bumra just marginally. I sort of have a little bit more sympathy. Good ball, Simon you because he got a very good ball. But a lot of the other shots were born out of compensation. And I feel like again this goes back to two things. One, they let India get too many runs and they knew it and they felt like they had to compensate for that with a really strong start in the power player statement. So start that included lots of boundaries and things like that. They played high risk shots and really frankly a couple of brainless shots in there as well that put them in a horrible position where they were four down and the top four couldn't make it into double figures. The second part of that for me is this whole the psychological hole that I got into just before those post match interviews that India have over Pakistan in those key moments. If you go back to 2022, Pakistan had that game in hand and let it go. If you go back to 2024 in New York where Pakistan were really close to winning, they dismiss India. Their target was 120 a runner ball. You'd back them to score, you'd back most teams to score that. But they just crumbled under that pressure. There's something about playing India at the moment that just affects Pakistan on a psychological level. It does not allow them to play their best cricket. I mean, maybe that's the difference between the two sides and the way that they've developed over the last couple of decades. You know, in the ipl, these Indian players face these scenarios on a regular basis where they're being tested, where they're put under intense pressure, where they're in front of massive crowds and you know, the scrutiny level is very high. Pakistan, on the other hand, don't have anything like that. They have the psl, but the scrutiny isn't anywhere near the level of ipl. And some would argue that the level isn't really on the same, on the same scale either. I, I just feel like right now there's definitely, definitely a skill gap. Like India is undoubtedly the best team in the world, favorites for this tournament, Defending champions and all that jazz. We all know that. But Pakistan should have performed better than that. They did not play anywhere near their potential because had they done, they would have made this, at the very least, a close game. They just crumbled under pressure by the time Usman Khan was putting his runs on with the shadab. Khan and I thought he batted really well as well because he was coming into this game again, a lot of scrutiny sort of breathing down his neck for a spot in the first 11. But I think he batted quite well, showed a lot of composure. But he too, eventually there was a ball with his name on it. Akshay Patel turning one past him. Beautiful stumping from Ishan Kishan. I mean, just it was quite telling that he hasn't played very often against India before and he didn't have the same amount of pressure. But a lot of these players are coming off regular losses to India. 3 In the Asia cup last year, in the previous World Cups. They've only beaten them once before. That was when Barbara and rizwan secured a 10 wicket win for Pakistan. Barbara. Well, Rizwan's not there anymore. Shaheen doesn't look like the same Shaheen who, you know, was famously described as a bowler that India cannot play. That Shaheen looks like a million miles away from the Shaheen we've seen today who looks short on confidence. We saw him go down, get some strapping on his knee. He didn't look ultra mobile in the field either. I don't know if there's something going on with them in terms of the fitness element. Pakistan just did not play as well as we know they could and made it relatively straightforward for a very strong Indian team who were always favorites.

You've mentioned a very strong Indian team, Alex. They were good today. I didn't think they were at their best. And yet they've still won by a considerable margin. They, they put Rinku Singh onto both.

Yeah, that was weird. That was.

Yeah, I wasn't quite sure that I really liked that particularly. No, because they still had overs there from. They'll argue. They're trying to.

Yeah, that was like when like Alistair Cook used to be on a test match or whatever, you go, what, what's going on? Why?

It felt a bit like that. But I guess, sorry, Cookie.

Did pick up a wicket.

But back to my original point, they won convincingly today and they got so much left in the tank. We've only had what, three overs from Varun Chakravarti, only three overs from Kuldeep Yadav, two from one from, two from Bumrah, three from Hardik. They didn't bat particularly well in the middle overs. It was a brilliant 77 from Ishan Kishan that propelled them to that. It just makes you think they are, they look if they can, if they can beat Pakistan that well, not playing that well, they're gonna be formidable back in India.

Of course. And they are, you know, when you, when you see them play, they dominate, don't they? They are the best team in the world. I think credit to India for adapting on that surface. You know, if, you know, players came out and saw the way Ishan Kishan battered and said, okay, we must get 240 here where he's absolutely flying, let's all go at it. Actually the ball was turning, it was doing a little bit. So the way that the batters, when wickets fell, came out and said, actually I'm, I'm struggling out here. I'm just gonna knock the ball into the outfield, I'm gonna rotate the strike and just get six, seven, eight and over. And then if the ball's in my spot, then I, then I'll hit it. I think that was really impressive. But again, India showing their strength, their depth, their adaptability. Yes, they are the best team in the world. But having said that, Pakistan let them get 15 or 20 runs too many. Like the captain just said at the post match interview, if, if I always said at the halfway stage, if Pakistan were chasing 160, it would have been a different game.

You're listening to the TMS podcast from BBC Radio 5 live.

If you're an H VAC technician and a call comes in, Grainger knows that you need a partner that helps you find the right product fast and hassle free. And you know that when the first problem of the day is a clanking blower motor, there's no need to break a sweat. With Grainger's easy to use website and product details, you're confident you'll soon have everything humming right along. Call 1-800-GRAINGER clickgrainger.com or just stop by Grainger for the ones who get it done. You know that goal you set at the start of the year? You can still do it. Whether you're committed to a thru hike with friends, lifting heavier or simply walking more, it's not too late to stick with it and make your future self proud. Especially with the all in One Nutrition shake from Cachava. Because quality nutrition shouldn't be complicated. Just two scoops of Cachava's all in One Nutrition Shake and you've got 25 grams of protein, 6 grams of fiber, greens, adaptogens and so much more. Plus it actually tastes delicious. No fillers, no nonsense, just the good stuff your body craves. So instead of adding to your backstock of supplements that over promise and under deliver, simplify your progress with just two scoops of the highest quality ingredients. Stick with your wellness goals. Go to kachava.com and use code NEWS for 15% off. That's kachava.com and use Code NEWS K-A C-H-A-V-A.com Code NEWS. You know that goal you set at the start of the year? You can still do it. Whether you're committed to a thru hike with friends, lifting heavier or simply walking more, it's not too late to stick with it and make your future self proud. Especially with the all in one Nutrition shake from Kachava. Because quality nutrition shouldn't be complicated. Just two scoops of Cachava's all in One Nutrition Shake and you've got 25 grams of protein, 6 grams of fiber, greens, adaptogens and so much more. Plus it actually tastes delicious. No fillers, no nonsense, just the good stuff your body craves. So instead of adding to your backstock of supplements that over promise and under deliver, simplify your progress with just two scoops of the highest quality ingredient. Stick with your wellness goals. Go to kechava.com and use code NEWS for 15% off. That's kachava.com and use code NEWS K-A C-H-A-V-A.com Code News.

England are back in action on Monday, playing their last game in the group stage. They will need to beat Italy to ensure qualification for the Super 8, but the Italians come into the match in good form after recording a brilliant 10 wicket win against Nepal. Commentary on 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds from 9.15am and head Henry Moran will be leading our coverage from Kolkata.

Well, here at Eden Gardens it is the day before England take on Italy, a seemingly unimaginable cricketing fixture. But it's a game in group C that have significant meaning for the future of England's campaign. Certainly lose and they're all but out. Victory will assure their passage through to the Super 8. And Italy's side who can't be taken lightly as as well they thrash Nepal in a really thrilling run chase by 10 wickets thanks to the efforts of two brothers who may have been born in Sydney but make no mistake, they are very much Italian by heritage as so many of this Italian side are. Many live in Italy and almost all have Italian grandparents or parents. Justin Mosca and Anthony Mosca, born in Sydney but with Italian family together in the middle with a record breaking partnership as they chased down 124 against an Apul side who of course ran England very close. Now Justin is a PE teacher, Anthony a carpenter who teaches woodwork at a juvenile detention centre. And I caught up with the two brothers on the boundary edge at Eden Gardens. You couldn't wipe the smile off their faces and I began by asking them about the success of of Italy's cricketers who have won as many games in a cricket World cup as the footballers have in a football World cup in the last two decades.

It was obviously a good day for Italy cricket but the bowler set the tone at the start for the batters and then obviously we knew the power play was going to be a pivotal play, a pivotal role in the win, so to speak. And fortunately enough we happen to it happened to come off and then we were able just to get the job done. Anyone a new batter to come in on that wick. It would have been hard for him to start so it was crucial that we went on and done it ourselves.

It seemed like an incredible performance given what Nepal had done against England.

Did you see it coming?

I don't know if I saw that coming. I mean cricket's a funny game though. Like if you have a look three days before things, there's a complete other end of the spectrum for us, us as a team. But for it to turn around that quickly just goes to show how things can turn. Yeah, I didn't see that performance coming but I definitely have full faith in us as a team in being far better than we were in the first game. And that showed out there which Was good.

It's an incredible story, Italian cricket and something I think 10 years ago would have seemed almost fairy tale. Talk us through your journey. You two as cricketers, born and raised in Sydney but with Italian heritage. Is that right?

Yeah, that's correct. Obviously growing up the Australian culture was a part of our grandparents life when they migrated to Sydney and our parents lives but they also brought a lot of Italian culture with them. So obviously on our street there was a lot of Italians there and we always had a lot of functions and our cousins would come over and we'd be watching the football and we'd walk around with Italian jerseys and we'd go to Italian restaurants and have coffees and then. But on the other end, you know, we'd be having a VB or we would be. We'd be going to cricket and watching cricket and watching Boxing Day test and watching Ponting go. And Brett Lee and McGrath. So we had the best of both worlds there and obviously our passion comes from the Italian side and maybe the cricket ability comes from the Aussie side.

It's a good mix. And Andrea Pirlo posting messages. Christian Vieri. I mean it's amazing some of the names that have got got involved in this.

Yeah, it's been incredible to couple of weeks in our prep before coming here, we're in Dubai and we actually bumped into Mario Balotelli there and Maldini at the airport. So just to even be in any of their companies has been amazing. So we've been quite fortunate to cross paths with a few of the greats of Italian history. So.

Yeah.

Were they aware of what you guys were doing?

I know Viera is. I'm not so sure about Balotelli and Maldini. They're a response was a little bit different but with a bit of luck, you know, that's the aim of this side, to try and get some awareness around Italy in general because you know, there's plenty of opportunity there to grow this sport in that country. And like I've said many times before, Italy is such a passionate country with everything they do. With a bit more eyes on the game, hopefully it expands a bit more for us.

Apparently on the back pages as well. I mean it really is cutting through.

That's obviously something, something small that can go a long way to. To increasing Italy's cricket community and getting onto a bigger stage in Italy. It's obviously growing now, but we want to get it a little bit further and get us on the world map more so than what it is because.

There'S a Bit of a sense sometimes with teams in World Cups, that you've got players that may be expats that are going over and representing through quite tenuous heritage. But a lot of your team live in Italy and training Italy.

Yeah. That's another part of this experience that's been a bit different. We cop a fair bit of flak around. Whether it's right or wrong, it's up to those people that make those calls. But we do have a lot of the boys that have sacrificed so much that live there for a better life and they've grown there, they've learned their trade through Italy. That doesn't seem to get highlighted as much. But at the end of the day, in our group of circle, in our spirit circle, we know our heritage, our culture, we know where we're from. So that's all that matters at the end of the day.

And let's not forget, this is an England team with three players that were raised in Barbados. So, you know, it's easy to make. It's easy to make accusations, of course. And what am I hearing about Andrea Bocelli on the team bus on the way home from matches?

Yeah, that's. It's probably one of my favorite songs. And I reckon there was a few of us that introduced that song probably a year and a half to two years ago. Into a team, a team drive. We'll go on training, I think, and we put it on and obviously Ed Sheeran's a legend. And then when the Italian version come on into that, that second verse was like, wow, this is amazing. So that. That. That becomes our sort of victory song when we're on the bus now, so. Or even before the games, to be honest. We put it. We put that song on and we seem to switch on a little bit when that comes on, because it's obviously a beautiful song and two legends singing it.

So.

Yeah, no, it's. It plays a role in all our hearts in this squad.

Yeah. Now, I had a bit of a different take on it. I remember vaguely in our first tour for England, actually sitting in a karaoke bar in Finland and AJ and Harry Manente actually got up on stage and that was the song they sung at about 3 o' clock in the morning. So from there it sort of came into the. Into the dressroom. It is awesome. Like, it's one of the great experiences. I think the best one we've done so far was actually pretty good one the other night. But when we qualified in Netherlands, that team bus was. It was an incredible moment. Yeah. With a bit of luck, we'll get Bocelli out here one day.

And so how much of the sort of Italian culture pervades this team on a day to day basis from what you guys are doing?

Don't worry about that, mate. There's a lot of blokes on this side that can eat, so I've got a lot of guys that can eat. Everyone in your squad loves their coffee and almost, I reckon I'd say 99% of us, bar one or two, use our hands a lot when we talk. So when we're, if we, if we're having a disagreement with each other or something and then there's hands waving everywhere and. But now we are, we know it's a big role for us as a group that the reason for doing this is for each other and our families. So automatically our culture's instilled into this group. So when we talk, when I talk to Grant, Grant Stewart's another one. When I talk, talk to Grant, it's everything that he does is just for his family and his culture and that's it. There's no two ways about it. There's no personal egos, there's nothing that we want to get for a personal accolade, whatever it is, it's just everything's for the team and to give back to our families that gave us this opportunity. That's the number one rule you mentioned.

The Manentes is another big link. And guys are part of your cricketing journey?

Yeah, absolutely. They're two of our great mates and like the beauty of sport is you meet different people but, you know, they're really close mates of ours, some of our best mates that we met through cricket and they're absolute beauties. Like, we're a bit older than both the Minentes and to see where they've come in their own careers is very inspiring for us as well. I remember Benny Fondley from when he first played his first grade game of cricket, the work ethic he's had and yeah, they're great boys, great people with a great family and we're very lucky to have done this with them. If you spend a couple of minutes around us, you'll probably question yourself as to how we're friends because the language that gets thrown around, not that very kind. But the boys, they're absolute beauties and Menentes and it's very special to be able to share these moments with them. Shared a lot of special ones, not even just on the cricket field, outside in life in general. But this is Right up there.

What would it mean if you could do something spectacular against England?

What would it mean? Obviously it'll mean the world as it would, but we can't think too far ahead. We've got to stick to our processes and if we do that, we've prepared well. If we do that, we know we can give it a good nudge. We know obviously the quality England brings to cricket. If they're not the best in the world, then they're up there. But we've got to back our skill sets and if, if we do that, then as I said, we'll go close. But it would mean a lot and I reckon it'll definitely put us up there on the world stage in cricket if that happened.

Yeah, I think he spoke pretty well there. Like, it's obviously going to be a massive achievement if we can get the job done. We're under no illusions that, you know, the difference in, you know, standard, like, they're full time cricketers, they do this for a living, but we're very confident we can match them. It's just about putting that into action. So while we know it's going to be a tough challenge, we'll be putting our best foot forward, that's for sure. So.

And Andrea Bocelli might get a heck of an outing if you do get the job done. I'd want to be on that team. Bas.

Yeah, he. He follows cricket, doesn't he? I'm pretty sure he follows cricket. So if he does, I might have to send him a message just asking for a couple of tickets and maybe I can get on stage with him. Actually, no, I better not. I haven't got a great voice.

Yeah.

Hopefully I can meet him one day.

Yeah, no, either him or Ed Sheeran on the bus would be perfect at the end of the day. And maybe I know a few of the. I know Bethel from the English side, so I might even get him to jump in and he can experience the moment.

Thank you, boys.

Cheers.

Thanks to Henry moran for that 9.30am Monday morning on Sports Extra for England against Italy. That's where you can hear every ball of that game. That's it for this episode of the TMS podcast. Make sure you're subscribed so you never miss an episode. And keep up with all the latest from the Men's T20 World cup on the BBC Sport app, app and website. But for now, from Colombo, it's goodbye.

The TMS podcast from BBC Radio 5 live.

If you're an H vac technician and a call comes in Grainger knows that you need a partner that helps you find the right product fast and hassle free. And you know that when the first problem of the day is a clanking blower motor, there's no need to break a sweat. With Grainger's easy to use website and product details, you're confident you'll soon have everything humming right along. Call 1-800-GRAINGER Click grainger.com or just stop by Grainger for the ones who get it done.

If you're the purchasing manager at a manufacturing plant, you know having a trusted partner makes all the difference. That's why, hands down, you count on Grainger for auto reordering. With on time restocks, your team will have the cut resistant gloves they need at the start of their shift and you can end your day knowing they've got safety well in hand. Call 1-800-GRAINGER Click grainger.com or just stop by Grainger for the ones who get it done.