Good to get back into the groove, says Kohli after Galle win

The Indian skipper also lauded Hardik Pandya’s all-round abilities while allaying concerns about a nervous dressing room ahead of the Test series.

Published : Jul 29, 2017 19:56 IST , Galle

Kohli: ‘ The nerves being built up or the panic being created was all on the outside’.
Kohli: ‘ The nerves being built up or the panic being created was all on the outside’.
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Kohli: ‘ The nerves being built up or the panic being created was all on the outside’.

A general relishing the after-glow of a much-savoured triumph, that was the sriking picture which Virat Kohli presented as he addressed the press here on Saturday, after securing the first Test to gain a 1-0 lead.

Excerpts

A comprehensive performance

We would like to think so. There are still some areas that we want to look back and try to improve; especially when you get four-five wickets and not letting the lower order get away with a few runs. It’s something that we can still identify and work on in the next two games. It was good to get back into the groove and do things that are supposed to be done to win a Test match. From that point of view, we had a pretty good game.

READ: Spinners apply finishing touches as India goes 1-0 up

A century after a brief drought

I wasn’t looking at things from that point of view. I wasn’t certainly looking at things like how many innings I haven’t scored because when you are playing all formats, you don’t think which format you have not scored runs in how many innings. But it always feels good to get runs when the team wins.

 

Hardik Pandya and the x-factor

When you play away from home, (you need that) one guy gives you a lot of balance and Hardik can be that guy. You see someone like Ben Stokes, what he does for England. I see no reason why Hardik can’t become that for India.

Openers and a problem of plenty

We got a fourth guy (Murali Vijay) who is a regular opener for India, who is not fit. We have got all four openers firing now. Shikhar (Dhawan) was supposed to go to Melbourne, now he has got a 190 in Galle. So, anything can happen in life. I am happy for both these guys (Dhawan and Abhinav Mukund) who have done well. K.L. Rahul is obviously a champion player, so we will have to eventually take a call on who plays in the next Test and I am sure the third guy will understand.

The win, a balm to frayed nerves

It's another Test for us. The nerves being built up or the panic being created was all on the outside. Inside the change room, the atmosphere is absolutely same. We have just done what we have done in the past two years on a consistent basis. And we have just gone out there and focused on the game and that's all you think of doing and that's all that we are going to do in the future.

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