Revenge shouldn’t be on India’s mind: Bam

Sports psychologist BP Bam on what Dhoni's men need to do against England in ODI series

Revenge shouldn't be on India's mind: Bam

Sports psychologist BP Bam on what Dhoni's men need to do against England in ODI series

It was one of the worst defeats for the Indian team in England this summer when they finished without winning a game. They lost the Test series 0-4, ODIs 0-3, one-off T20 international and also surrendered the No 1 Test ranking.u00a0

Virat Kohli reacts during the fifth ODI against England in Cardiff.
Pic./Getty Images

On October 14, Mahendra Singh Dhoni's team will be up against the same opponents -- this time in their own backyard. However, not much has changed for the Indian team. Most of their key players are yet to recover from injuries which they suffered during the ill-fated England tour.

Revenge would definitely be on top of everyone's mind when Dhoni's boys take on Alastair Cook's team in the first one-day international at Hyderabad. However, Indian sports psychologist Dr BP Bam reckoned the Indian team should not approach the England series with an aim to take revenge.u00a0

"They should forget what has happened in England. It's a fresh start. Revenge takes you in the past. They should just take their minds off past results. Just like one cannot rest on past laurels, one cannot keep thinking about bad results," Dr Bam told MiD DAY yesterday.

"If they go into the series thinking of taking revenge, it will mean they are still stuck with what happened in England. The team has to move on from there. India came close to winning a few ODIs, but luck was not on their side.

"Their attempts failed, but the players did not. They should not lose their self-confidence. What happened in the last tournament is not relevant now. To become champions again and remain dominant, one has to learn to erase the past," added Dr Bam, who has worked closely with Rahul Dravid. He was also the mental conditioning coach of the Indian shooting team for a brief period.u00a0u00a0u00a0

The Nasik-based sport psychologist said it is important that the Indian team develops the winning attitude in order to bounce back. "They've to play everything on merit now. They should play to win. That's the attitude they need to have so that they can bounce back from the slump. The aim should be to displace England from the No 1 spot," he signed off.