MS Dhoni & Co ready to catch 'special' market in United States

Fort Lauderdale Florida USA is a lsquospecialrsquo market for cricket and there is no reason why the game canrsquot be successful here asserted captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni on the eve of Indiarsquos first international match on American soilAmerican fans clicking selfies with vicecaptain Virat Kohli ahead of teamrsquos training session at Fort Lauderdale in Florida yesterday PicAFPldquoAs far as the facility is concerned it is as good as you would get anywhere in the world Yes the stadium is not that big though when it comes to the playing area it is aperfect groundrdquo said Dhoni yesterday ahead of first of two T20 Internationals between India and the West Indies at the Central Broward Regional Park StadiumMS DhoniMSD back after breakDhoni who returns to action after a long break feels cricket in America is a winwin for the game and the huge Indian diaspora living hereldquoAlso what we have to see is that it is a new venture for cricket Looking at everything it is a perfect staging ground Few of other international teams have already playedhere also not to forget that some of the T20 leagues have happened The infrastructure looks good Overall it is a big occasion Stepping into the USA for the first time as theIndian cricket teamldquoAs fas as effort is concerned I always felt the USA was big market a lot of subcontinent people stay here not only Indians I feel it is a good start The timingsbroadcast are also good It feels good to be hererdquo said Dhoni who is expecting a bigger crowd support for his team than the West IndiesWindies can hurtIndia registered a comfortable win the preceding Test series in the West Indies but they are a much better unit in the limited overs format Dhoni too said beating the reigning World T20 champions will be toughldquoI would say in limited overs format the West Indies are extraordinary They have the right balance they are entertaining as well It will be very interesting the twomatch series It is an early morning start here but it wonrsquot make much of a differencerdquo said the skipper Dhoni further said that playing only two formats has helped him focus on his fitnessldquoDuring this break time fitness is quite easy to maintain The reason is you have ample time to prepare What becomes a slight issue is the cricketing aspect There was a lot of rain back home in India so most of the schedule was indoor with a bit of bowling machine to go with itldquoThere was not much outdoor activity Anyway feels good to be back Also this year we wonrsquot be playing a lot of limited overs cricket so this gives us an opportunity to make the most of two days we haverdquo said the wicketkeeper batsmanldquoThere is a time for everything When you start playing you want to play as much as you can irrespective of the location That way it is difficult to maintain fitness andworkload But when you get a break you can follow a proper schedule It gives you ample time I have put emphasis on my fitness to prolong my careerrdquo Dhoni addedHe is also looking forward to working with Anil Kumble the coach having playing alongside him in the past ldquoI learnt a lot from Anil bhai especially in Tests though I have also played with him in ODIS The way he used to bowl to a batsman how accurate he was his consistency was amazingldquoAlso how clear he was in his thinking and gameplan All of that will help him as a coach Modern day cricket is all about adjusting and that is something that Anil bhai didvery wellrdquo Dhoni added