Exclusive: T20 World Cup: Felt pure joy after we beat Pakistan, will be silly for us to only plan for SKY and Virat, says Zimbabwe all-rounder Ryan Burl | Cricket News – Times of India

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Zimbabwe have so far played three matches in the Super 12s and have won 1 match, lost 1, while one ended in a no result. They are fourth on the Group 2 points table with three points.
Meanwhile, Pakistan have lost two of their three matches so far. They lost first against India and were then stunned by Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe all-rounder Ryan Burl, who has featured in all the matches the Red shirts have played so far in the Super 12s, spoke to TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive interview from Perth and said playing against India in a bilateral series ahead of the World Cup helped the Chevrons a lot in preparing for the mega event.
India, led by KL Rahul, travelled to Zimbabwe in August earlier this year to play a three-match ODI series. The tourists swept the hosts 3-0.
“Playing against India before the tournament (World Cup) was obviously a good experience. I think playing against any top opponent prior to World Cups helps so much with preparation and confidence leading up to the big stage,” the 28 year old, born in Marondera, told TimesofIndia.com.

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After pulling off a win by the skin of their teeth against Pakistan, Zimbabwe are very high on confidence. Though they ran into Bangladesh after that and were handed a heart-breaking 3 run loss by the Bangla Tigers.
Zimbabwe will face the Netherlands on Wednesday (November 2), and then India on Sunday (November 6).
On being asked about facing 2007 champions India and the possibility of the Red Shirts stopping the dangerous and in-form batters like Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav, Burl said: “I think it’ll be silly for us to only plan against SKY and Virat because everyone in the Indian team is a massive threat on their day. That being said we have to take each game as it comes, and we Netherlands coming up which is an important game. India are a solid side and a dangerous side,” Burl further told TimesofIndia.com.

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BURL ON SIKANDAR RAZA’S WORK ETHIC
Sikandar Raza, who has been playing for Zimbabwe since 2013, played a pivotal role in Zimbabwe’s win against Pakistan. The emotions and the never-say-never attitude on Raza’s face were evident after he bowled a tight 16th over that changed the course of the game.

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Raza bowled down the leg side to a well-settled Shan Masood. The Pakistan batter came down the track, and tried to play a flick shot, but missed the ball completely. Regis Chakabva had enough time to collect the ball and whip the bails off to show Masood, who scored 44 off 38 balls, the way back to the pavilion.
Apart from Masood, Raza removed Shadab Khan (17) and Haider Ali (0).
Raza, a Pakistan-born cricketer, claimed 3 for 25 and bagged the Man of the Match award for his spectacular bowling.
“A win against Pakistan obviously means the world to not just me, but my team, my family and all the fans across the world that have supported our journey to getting here. That vibe and atmosphere were awesome. Pure joy and elation. It’s something that is very hard to put into words, it’s just the best feeling as a cricketer. We didn’t really have a chance to speak to the opposition after the game. Unfortunately, it’s all a very fast turnaround and not much break between (the) games,” Burl recalled.
Lauding Raza, Burl said: “Raza has worked so hard leading up to this incredible period of form he’s going through.”
“I’m not surprised at all by how well he’s performing, because his work ethic behind the scenes is so high,” Burl signed off.