Won't be disappointed even if India lose New Zealand T20s, focus is on World Cup: Gavaskar

India vs New Zealand: Sunil Gavaskar said India can experiment with their playing XIs and try out different combinations in the ongoing Twenty20 International series in New Zealand to get an idea how the players handle pressure.

Former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar said he would not be "too disappointed" even if India lost the ongoing Twenty20 International series in New Zealand as the focus of the team was on World Cup. India suffered a crushing 80-run defeat in the first game of the three-match series in Wellington on Wednesday.

"India need a mix of both [experiment for the World Cup and focus on winning series in New Zealand]. The World Cup is just a few months away. To arrive on a final squad, there needs to be a few experiments. In this T20I series, you could get an idea of who the team can look at [for the World Cup]. The likes of Vijay Shankar can be observed. Even in T20Is, you can figure out if the players will be suited for the 50-over format or not," Gavaskar told Sports Tak.

Gavaskar also said India can experiment with their playing XIs and try out different combinations in the T20 series in New Zealand to get an idea how the players handle pressure.

"Yes, you need to win matches in New Zealand. But the T20 World Cup is far away, it's in October 2020. I won't be very disappointed even if India lose this T20I series. If the performances are good, then there's no problem. The team is right now focused on the World Cup. Thus it's important that chances are given to players like Vijay Shankar, Rishabh Pant and Krunal Pandya. The way they handle pressure here will give the team an idea of whether they are ready for the World Cup or not," Gavaskar said.

Courtesy : INDIA TODAY