Galgamuwa calls India XI embarrassing and slams Raghvani for feigning injury in heated pre-InterClub interview

Vidanda Galgamuwa gave a damning assessment of India XI's chances ahead of the Edgware Cricket Club inter club fixture on Saturday 13 April. The ROW XI captain sat down with chief correspondent Stephen Poopenshaft to discuss the game.

Stephen Poopenshaft (SP): Going into the third InterClub fixture in a couple of weeks time, how do you rate the Rest of the World's chances?

Vidanda Galgamuwa (VG): After a difficult last couple of games against India, I think ROW are now in a strong position to come out victorious. I believe the Indian team have let two victories give them the impression they are unbeatable. Some individuals within the team have honestly called the beautiful game of cricket into disrepute. Their behaviour has been downright embarrassing.

I am a patient man but they have crossed a couple of lines over the years which I and the ROW squad are extremely keen to correct. The Indian team really need to be brought back to reality and I believe we have the right squad to do it.

SP: India have a formidable side, with a lot of talent. Their batting in particular will no doubt be a handful for the ROW side. Have you got a plan to keep them quiet?

VG: Yes, Mr. Poopenshaft. The team and I have a game plan for each individual Indian batsman. It's nothing complicated, we are going to stick to the basics and play our game. There are a couple of individuals in the team that I think have a tendency to buckle under pressure and we hope to provide that pressure.

The ROW squad is motivated and will target the necessary batsmen. We have some incredible bowlers that have showed they have what it takes against these bats. There have been times where the Indian batsmen have shown great form in the nets, but as we are all well aware you can do well in the nets but faulted in a real game.

SP: It was feisty encounter last time around and you were hit with a bouncer. Are you looking forward to revenge this year?

VG: Look, I am not someone who goes out there looking for revenge. All I can say is I have been practicing my pull so a short ball won't catch me off guard again and if it does, we have plenty of batsmen to come in and have a go.

Also the bowler that delivered that ball last year has faked an injury I heard, so maybe he's a bit worried about a little retaliation. I personally would like him to play and say publicly his safety will not be compromised.

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India take on ROW at Paddington Recreation Ground on Saturday 13 April and we look forward to what should be an epic encounter.