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I would never trade places with Messi: Mascherano

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Barcelona: Lionel Messi’s compatriot and Barcelona teammate Javier Mascherano says he would not trade places with the former due to the level of expectation which is heaped on the Argentine.

Messi netted 43 goals as Barcelona claimed the La Liga title, while the Catalans will be playing Copa del Rey and Champions League finals against Athletic Club Bilbao and Juventus, respectively.

And Mascherano says he doesn’t ever want to face the pressure that Messi does in every game that he plays as he tries to keep proving he is the best in the world.

“I wouldn’t trade places with him,” Mascherano was quoted as saying goal.com on Thursday.

“You have to be a very special type of person to bear the burden of proving every three days, every game, that you’re the best in the world,” he said.

The 30 year-old said Athletic will be a tough side to beat as they lock horns at the Camp Nou stadium on Saturday.

“They’re a team par excellence and they’re going to make life very tough for us,” he said.

“The fact that Athletic have preserved their culture in the increasingly globalised world of football makes them a special club. Despite all the limitations, they remain competitive. They deserve the utmost appreciation.”

Barcelona will end the season with the Champions League final in Berlin on June 6 to clash against Italian champions Juventus in what Mascherano believes will be decided on the “slimmest of margins”.

“They’re the biggest team in Italy. They’ve really prepared for this moment in recent years. It’s going to be an extremely tough game and it will be decided on the slimmest of margins,” he said.

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Sunil Gavaskar gives his opinion of GT allrounder Rahul Tewatia

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The left-handed batsman from Haryana is garnering praise from all quarters for the way he’s finishing games regularly in the most exciting IPL season.

Gavaskar reckons Tewatia’s whirlwind knock in Sharjah (in IPL 2020) where he smashed West Indies pacer Sheldon Cottrell for five sixes in an over, gave him the confidence that he belongs to the big stage.

Speaking on Cricket Live on Star Sports, Gavaskar said, “That assault on Sheldon Cottrell in Sharjah gave him the belief to do the impossible and the confidence that he belongs here. We saw the impossible (he did with the bat) the other day as well. There’s no twitching or touching the pads (which shows a batter’s nervousness) when he bats in the death overs. He just waits for the ball to be delivered and plays his shots. He’s got all the shots in the book, but most importantly his temperament to stay cool in a crisis is brilliant.”

Gavaskar has also nicknamed the 28-year-old cricketer the ‘ice-man’ and lauded Tewatia’s ability to remain unruffled during the tense moments.

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