"They can go all the way unbeaten": Iconic cricketer Viv Richards backs India to achieve rare milestone

New Delhi : West Indies iconic cricketer Viv Richards believes that India can go all the way unbeaten in the ongoing World Cup with the strong mindset that they showed in the entire tournament.

India are the only unbeaten team in the tournament after facing cricketing giants like Australia, South Africa and Pakistan. The Men in Blue have dominated the table rankings by obliterating the opposition.

They are just a couple of matches away from lifting the trophy and Richards feels that India can go all the way if they continue to play with their current mindset.

"In terms of this year's competition, India have a mindset that they can go all the way playing like this. That absolutely should be their mindset and would be mine if I was in that dressing room - let's go out with all guns blazing. That approach has worked so far and if that changes, things may go astray," Richards said in a coloum of ICC.

"I believe they can go all the way unbeaten, which is really something to strive for. There may be some fears of 'we have played so well so far, there may be a bad game around the corner in the semi-final'. They have to try and nullify those and banish any negative thoughts," Richards added.

New Zealand fortified their position to qualify for the semi-final after clinching a 5-wicket victory. Pakistan will have to register a high run-margin victory against England in their final group-stage match.

Richards believes that the Men in Green should have already qualified for the semi-final with the quality that they possess.

"Pakistan could yet join them in the knockout stages but I can't help thinking that with the talent they have, they should have already sealed their spot. I have seen up close in recent years through my coaching work [Pakistan Super League] how much ability exists in that squad but they have made life hard for themselves - I think they are a more talented squad than their place in the table would suggest. They can beat the very best on their day so there may be some punches left in that team," Richards added.

Pakistan's fate in the ongoing World Cup will be decided on Saturday at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata.