Kohli: 'Added responsibility has always worked for me'

India's newly crowned limited-overs captain Virat Kohli spoke about the benefits of added responsibility, team ethos, and more, on the sidelines of a promotional event in Pune.

Virat Kohli poses for the cameras at a promotional event in Pune.

Virat Kohli had a long and busy day. The newly-appointed India captain across all three formats attended a promotional event at the far end of the city, then joined his team-mates for a training session before rushing to visit a famous cricket museum later in the evening.

But the in-form batsman was focussed on the task at hand. At the promotional event in the morning, Kohli spoke about his new responsibility.

On leading the team in all three formats

Kohli: Added responsibility has always worked for me in the sense that you have no room to be complacent or relax at any stage. Even in the [Indian Premier League], it’s very easy to throw my wicket away, for example, and I have to firstly make that kind of effort before asking my team-mates to do it. As a captain I have to set an example.

On team ethos

Kohli: For me, the most important thing is that the team should realise that the ultimate goal is to win. You have to play consistent cricket at a very high intensity for a very long time to win the game. That is one of the things that we have been able to do in Test matches. We have become more resolute, patient and mentally stronger than the opposition.

On his most memorable innings in Test and limited overs

Kohli: That inning > in Mohali against the Aussies (T20 World Cup quarterfinal) along with the double ton in Mumbai against England in recently-concluded Test series are my best knocks.

On the pranksters in the dressing room

Kohli: By far Ishant Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar are the naughtiest characters in the dressing room. Jadeja too isn’t far behind.