Virat Kohli rated his 103 against England as an important knock of his career. “I was really eager to do well in this series so I probably got a little too desperate to score runs and that is not good for a batsman.
“You need to be desperate, you need to be hungry, but you can’t get too desperate and start putting pressure on yourself. I am really pleased to have got this hundred,” said Kohli.
Conceding the situation was challenging for him and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Kohli added, “It was a slow wicket, not easy to get the ball away. I had to show some patience and I just thought of applying myself and not think of anything else, just play six balls at a time, one over at a time, that is what we decided out in the middle.”
“It was all about showing patience and just watching the ball and reacting to it rather than thinking about what we are going to be at the end of the day or the end of the session.”
Reflecting on the series, Kohli observed, “I was waiting for this one innings. I never doubted myself, never thought about what people were saying. I have always believed in my abilities.
“I worked hard for the last one month. You can’t keep performing in every series or every match, these ups and downs happen but you need to stay positive and have the same mindset when you do well and when you don’t do well.”
Kohli shared his anguish with Dhoni at the latter getting run out on 99. “It was disappointing because he had worked hard the whole day. It was something very good for an attacking player to calm down so much and actually fight it out the whole day.
“He deserved a hundred and it was sad to see him get run out on 99.”
On the state of the pitch, Kohli concluded, “I think it was the same. It was just that this is a kind of wicket where you need to show patience and that is what we decided. The wicket hasn’t changed much but I think the cracks are opening up slowly so you might see a completely different wicket tomorrow. The spinners might come into play a bit more.”
