West Indies head coach Darren Sammy attended the press conference and showed great motivation to face India. The former West Indies captain also claimed to capitalize on his past experience here and their impeccable record at the Eden Gardens.

Ahead of the much-anticipated do-or-die clash between India and West Indies, the two teams will clash in mentality. The mental framework is crucial for the team at this stage of preparation and West Indies head coach Darren Sammy’s interview was an attack on the mental foundation of the Indian team ahead of the big tournament.

Coach Darren Sammy announces batting power display against India

One of the first things Sammy mentioned during the game was that for him and the team, bygones are bygones. They have left the South Africa match in Ahmedabad and are now just moving forward with a positive mindset.

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They are well aware of their batting superiority and will get a chance to prove it again against India. “We have good batting ability and we showed that against SA, which was unfortunate. I think we have a chance to show that again tomorrow,” Sami said.

We left the SA game in Ahmedabad.

We have good batting ability and we showed that against SA, which was unfortunate.

I think we have a chance to show that again tomorrow.

—Kingshuk Kusari (@KusariKingshuk) February 28, 2026

Daren Sammy also didn’t seem to be nervous that they would be facing the host nation in such an important game. He quite pointed out that he was excited about the game with 80,000 people in the stadium and 1.4 billion people outside the stadium.

On attacking India
To progress in the tournament, you have to beat India at some point.

I’m looking forward to the game.

There are 80,000 people on the ground. There are 1.4 billion out there. This is David and Goliath.

—Kingshuk Kusari (@KusariKingshuk) February 28, 2026

“I use my experience of having been here before to understand how good Eden Gardens would be for us.” – Darren Sammy

Daren Sammy was the captain of the West Indies team when they last toured India during the 2016 World Cup. West Indies won the World Cup for the second time at the same venue at Eden Gardens.

Therefore, he mentioned that he would use his previous experience and the Garden of Eden’s favor in their favor. West Indies maintain their unrivaled record in the T20 World Cup at the Eden Gardens.

Great West Indies team winning in India. They left a mark on future generations.

Tomorrow we have to go to India. I used my experience of being here before to understand how good Eden Gardens would be for us.

Hopefully this will transfer to performance.

—Kingshuk Kusari (@KusariKingshuk) February 28, 2026

Sami issues open challenge to India but doesn’t underestimate them

Darren Sammy also spoke highly of his players. He showed great faith in all West Indies XI players and claimed that they will be a threat against India. However, while issuing the warning, he was also cautious about the defending champion.

India are one of the strongest teams in T20 cricket and Darren Sammy firmly believes that they are the strongest rivals. Therefore, he claimed it was a fitting contest between two heavily armed parties.

I have 11 dangerous players against India.

India have also played 11 times against us.

—Kingshuk Kusari (@KusariKingshuk) February 28, 2026

Also read: “Team India is a stronger team” – Kris Srikkanth drags Ian Bishop ahead of IND vs WI Super 8 match