Playing on a well-known ground, and an important one, the Indian team will try to tick every box against the Netherlands before starting their Super-8 stage of the ICC T20 World Cup at Narendra Modi Stadium.The last Group A fixture between India and the Netherlands is scheduled for Wednesday here. While the town’s talk is centred on the next match (when India face South Africa on February 22), the showdown against the Netherlands is not only crucial for topping Group A but also for Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Kuldeep Yadav and Arshdeep Singh to regain form.Abhishek, who enters the tournament as a player to watch for India, has four ducks in his last six innings. While he was expected to stride shoulder-to-shoulder with Ishan Kishan in the powerplay, he did not play at his best. After a nought in the tournament opener, a stomach infection forced him out of the game against Namibia. In the high-stakes outing against Pakistan, he failed to score for the second time in as many matches.“He wasn’t well lately, and we don’t create unnecessary pressure or overanalyse the players. We do talk, discuss and observe, and he also comes up with his plans…so there’s no question of building anything on him,” said Sitanshu Kotak, India’s batting coach. He also refuted observations on Varma’s trouble against spin on a slow track—especially in the last couple of games. “The side posted the highest ever total against Pakistan, and every batter contributed as per the planning. The execution Varma needed yielded well for the side. One cannot expect boundaries in every over or on every second ball,” he added. Even on the eve of the match, Varma specifically focused on facing spinners in the nets for a good amount of time with Rinku Singh by his side. The duo spent almost an hour facing the spinners, with throwdown specialists turning by turn at one of the side-playing pitches of the stadium.Kotak also hinted that pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah will not be rested for the final against the Netherlands. “I don’t think he (Bumrah) will rest. We will decide later by evening, after considering pitch conditions,” confirmed Kotak.A last chanceThe soccer-dominated nation, led by Scott Edwards in cricket, had arrived at this tournament as an experienced Associate squad. The likes of Roelof van der Merwe, Bas de Leede, Max O’Dowd and Logan van Beek brought experience to help the Dutch team push Pakistan to the brink in the tournament opener. After the heartbreaking defeat to the USA in Chennai, the side literally threw up their promotion to the Super-8. However, facing India at home is something the side is keenly awaiting. “It’s obviously a massive opportunity. It is the biggest stadium in the world. To be playing against India in India, the biggest stadium, is something all the guys are really looking forward to,” said skipper Scott Edwards, laughing that maximum seats match the ‘Orange’ colour (the iconic colour of Dutch teams across all sport).He further added, “It’s a great opportunity to test yourselves against the best. Cricket is growing in the Netherlands. We are promoting the sport and hopefully our performances can help grow that game in the Netherlands.” The side which gave jitters to Pakistan till the last over may prove fatal for the co-hosts, as the visitors are not bothered by the results. “The games against Pakistan and the USA were really heartbreaking. That was not our best outcome. I think we should have won at least one of those two. Playing in the world’s largest cricket stadium is something that demands our best, and hopefully we will have our final say before heading back home,” added the skipper. On the team’s last encounter against India in the 2022 T20 World Cup, the skipper said a lot has changed since then for both nations. “Things have changed a lot since then. We have all the focus on tomorrow’s game,” added Edwards.Zimbabwe qualify for the Super 8 stageAs Zimbabwe qualify for the Super 8 stage after stunning Australia, India will now face South Africa in their opening Super-8 match in Ahmedabad on February 22, followed by Zimbabwe in Chennai on February 26 and the West Indies in Kolkata on March 1. “Every other team in this tournament is capable of producing an upset. Australia’s exit is quite surprising, but we are not taking Zimbabwe as an easy team to defeat,” Kotak said. Former champions Australia crashed out of the T20 World Cup in a shock group-stage exit after Zimbabwe’s clash against Ireland was washed out in Pallekele (Sri Lanka) today. The abandoned fixture sealed Zimbabwe’s qualification for the Super 8 stage alongside Sri Lanka from Group B. Zimbabwe defeated Australia by 23 runs.