World T20 champions India on alert for Afghanistan after Japan scare

India captain Shreyas Iyer ruled out any complacency ahead of Monday’s Asian Games quarter-finals against Afghanistan, conceding last week’s scare against Japan had jolted the Twenty20 world champions out of any complacence.

In a rain-hit match at Sano, India edged Japan in a five-over shootout to lift the Suzuki Cup in the maiden one-off meeting between the men’s sides — a jolt that underlined the danger of underestimating any opponent in alien conditions.

India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are seeded directly into the last eight, while Nepal, Afghanistan, Malaysia and Hong Kong advanced from the preliminary groups.

With India’s women having successfully defended their Asian Games title, attention now turns to Iyer’s side to emulate them.

“Not just Afghanistan, no team can be taken lightly at any stage – just look at how tough Japan made it for us the other day,” Iyer said on Sunday.

“The pitches here cannot be set to a certain standard, so to adapt is key. It will be challenging for all the teams.”

Expectation remains sky-high for the sport’s most followed team, and Iyer acknowledged the scrutiny that comes with the jersey.

“Whenever you represent India, there are a lot of expectations, that you have to finish at the top. That is always there,” Iyer said of the “good pressure”.

“When there are expectations, you want to deliver. But I think we shouldn’t think of the outcome too much. We have set a standard as a team, and we must try to transcend that in every match.”

Preparation has been complicated by persistent rain at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin, limiting India to only light work on Sunday, with the forecast uncertain for match day.

“We have to be mentally prepared irrespective of whatever the situation is going to be. We did get a decent chance to warm up and knock the ball around today, and now the task is to adapt quickly to the pitch,” he said.

In Monday’s other action, Pakistan face Hong Kong in the first quarter-final.