Every match is the final for us: Ganga

Hyderabad:

Gearing up for a tough battle against Cape Cobras in Thursday's Champions League Twenty20 semifinal, Trinidad and Toabago skipper Daren Ganga has made it clear that they are considering every match in the USD six million event as the final.

T&T, who started their campaign in the 12-team tournament as underdogs, have so far come up with brilliant all-round performance to demolish every rival en route to the last-four stage.

"It's a very upbeat mood. All the guys are looking forward to the semifinal game. We talked about this prior to getting to India. We were virtual underdog," Ganga said here on the eve of the match.

"We came here setting ourselves to play six finals. We have played four finals so far and looking to the fifth. Hopefully we can go on to achieve all our goals and play the sixth one," he added.

Ganga also expressed satisfaction with the way the team have performed so far in the Champions League.

"Expectations were not high having arrived in India as a virtual unknown. The manner in which we have played has won a few hearts in terms of the type of cricket we have played and the success we have had as a team," Ganga said.

"I think, expectations are lot more now being in the semifinal. We know it's knock-out. But we have been thinking like that from the start and so are not going to put ourselves under any added pressure," Ganga said.

"We are just going to go out and enjoy ourselves. We prepared ourselves very hard as a team. We are going use the confidence got in the last four games to try and take us all the way to the final," Ganga added.

Meanwhile, his counterpart Cobras captain Andrew Puttick admitted that they would be under pressure in tomorrow's final-four encounter.

"Tomorrow's game is going to be massive. We are down to knock-out stage now. The pressure is going to be much greater for both sides. But it should be a good game," Puttick said at a joint press conference.