A confident India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said the Twenty20 World Cup triumph was a thing of the past, and the home team was now ready to play some tough cricket against ODI champions Australia."It's past. We have won the World Cup. It's a thing of the past. It's the start of a tough series. You are playing the world champions. So, we are just looking for some tough cricket," Dhoni told a press conference, a day before the first ODI against the tourists."We are fully prepared. Everyone is really prepared for the match," he said.The captain said having three former captains – Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly - back in the team will help him."It definitely helps a lot. If you think about the experience that they have, it's amazing. They have played more than 300 ODIs each. That really helps. Of course, there will be tough situations in the series, and I am glad that I can turn to them. Of course Yuvi (Yuvraj Singh) is also there. I can ask for suggestions. Ultimately, it's for deciding the best option that really works."Dhoni said a wicketkeeper being captain was an advantage for the squad."I don't think being a wicketkeeper (as captain) is a disadvantage. Being a wicketkeeper-captain is a plus as it helps in terms of arranging the field, where the batsman is playing and how the wicket is."It is tough to see from cover or mid-off whether a delivery was hit off a bad ball or if it was really a good shot, he reasoned.Dhoni brushed aside the tough talking by Australia captain Ricky Ponting in a media interaction on Thursday, saying the performance on the field is what mattered."If they (Australians) come here, they talk a lot; if we go there, they talk a lot. If you talk about the past and the present, then their press conference is also past. Everything is past. Whatever I say, it's past. What you have done in the past and what you want to do in future does not matter," he said, adding ‘What counts is performance on the match day’.Dhoni also said the choice was not between youngsters and senior players in the team."Whoever plays well, deserves a place in the team."
