After completing a clean sweep against England across formats, a thrilled Virat Kohli described the achievement as a “massive boost for Indian cricket”.
Speaking after the home side recorded a > thumping win in the third and final Twenty20 international here on Wednesday, Kohli said, “Winning all three - Tests, ODIs and Twenty20s - feels really, really good, because we were up against a top quality side. It is a great feeling, knowing that we didn't have that much experience in our teams. The Test team is almost as good as new. In the ODIs, we had three-four experienced guys, but the rest who stepped up were youngsters. This is a massive, massive boost for Indian cricket.”
Kohli, who has tasted success in his first full tour as skipper, stated that he relied on his predecessor M.S. Dhoni for advice. “I take a lot of advice from M.S. (Dhoni), and from Ashish Nehra too. Although I have captained the Test team for a while, the pace of ODI and T20 games is very fast. So, in crucial situations, it is never a bad idea to take advice from a person (Dhoni) who has captained the side at this level for so long,” he said.
On Wednesday, Kohli was dismissed in just the second over, but his team went on to post 202 in 20 overs. “The way we batted [on Wednesday] was a revelation. Even after I got out early, Raina and K. L. (Rahul) didn't stop their instincts," he said.
The 28-year-old explained that success of spinners like Yuzvendra Chahal and Amit Mishra vindicated the team management’s decision to rest R. Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja for this Twenty20 leg. “Having guys like Chahal, Mishra, Jayant and Rasool gives us an opportunity to rest Ashwin and Jadeja whenever we want. There is no harm in using them (Ashwin and Jadeja) as Test specialists and keeping them fresh.”
'Attacking mindset'
On Chahal’s impressive show, Kohli said, “Chahal and Mishra both have an attacking mindset. All I tell them is to go for the wickets. Even if you get hit for a six, it is no big deal.”
The star player finished the interaction with some good-natured ribbing of a journalist who questioned his form as an opening batsman. After a brief pause, Kohli replied, “(In Hindi) What do I say, sir? We won the series, and still you are saying this? In the IPL, I opened the innings, hit four centuries - everyone said that it was a revelation. Now that runs haven't come, it is a problem. Sir, focus on the 10 other players too. If I do everything, what will the others do?".
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