Unbeaten status on the line as India host Netherlands today

BENGALURU, Nov 11 (Agencies): Team India will be keen to remain unbeaten at the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup and head into the knockout stage of the tournament full of momentum when they host the Netherlands, here on Sunday.

India have taken all before them so far at the World Cup, having rarely been troubled on their way to eight wins from eight matches, reports ICC.

It looks like a clash between David and Goliath with the Netherlands languishing on the bottom of the standings, but it would be unwise for the tournament hosts to underestimate the Dutch.

The talented Netherlands outfit showed they are up to the class when they upset South Africa earlier in the tournament and their victory over Bangladesh was equally impressive.

They will however need all their star players to be at their best to topple India, with the performances of Bas de Leede, Max O'Dowd, Logan van Beek and skipper Scott Edwards to be pivotal to their hopes.

The Netherlands too have their own lure, with a victory likely to move them into the top eight places on the standings and one of the qualification spots for the ICC Champions Trophy in 2025.

The 36-year-old Rohit, who may be in his last World Cup alongside 35-year-old Virat Kohli, has scored 442 runs including one century at a strike-rate of 122.77.

"Rohit has certainly been a leader without a doubt," coach Rahul Dravid said on Saturday.

"He's led by example both on and off the field. There have been some games where it could have been tricky for us, but the fact that he's been able to get us to those kinds of starts has literally cracked open the game."

Dravid added: "He's been fantastic in his batting, the leadership that he's shown and taking on the game, in leading from the front."

Rohit's 131 against Afghanistan led the way and he followed it up with an 86 in the crushing win over Pakistan. The captain's 87 remained key in a low-scoring game against England.

Rohit took over the captaincy from Kohli, who was removed from the job in 2021 without a world title under his leadership belt.