Captain Virat Kohli said that India’s high success rate in the last two years in Test cricket could be traced back to the series win in Sri Lanka in August 2015. He highlighted the 2-1 series win after losing the first Test by 63 runs at Galle.
Off-spinner R. Ashwin (21 wickets), leg-spinner Amit Misra (15 wickets) and Ishant Sharma (13 wickets) played their part, but Kohli, a little over two years into India captaincy now, said a few hours before leaving for Colombo that the “team culture created then (August 2015)” had resulted in India believing that it could win overseas Test series.
All set to lead India in his ninth full Test series, Kohli did not name Ravi Shastri for creating that belief and culture, though he may have intended to. He said: “I think that tour (of Sri Lanka in 2015) for us was a landmark. If you look at the average age of that team a couple of years ago; obviously the players have matured from then on, it’s been 24 months. That tour for us was a sort of start of the belief system that we can win away from home and we do have the side required to win away from home.
“We do have a culture that’s been created in the team to win whatever Test matches, Test series we play. Losing the first Test (at Galle) was a shock to us, but the way we bounced back was only because of the team culture that was created at that stage where even the less experienced players — if you had compared us to Sri Lanka, the number of Tests was not even close — showed more belief in their abilities to win from any situation and that really turned our mindset around.
“From then on, you can see the results we have had so far. We have an away series coming up and same mindset would apply now what we started way back in 2015.”
Speaking about Ravi Shastri returning as the head coach, Kohli said: “We have worked together from 2014 to16. So there should be that kind of understanding (between us)...that you can also understand. So I don’t think that I need to understand anything new about (the coaching and support staff) in this scenario. We had worked earlier also and so we know what’s expected. So I don’t think there is any effort to understand (is needed) as we have worked earlier also.” Kohli’s response was to CAC member Sourav Ganguly’s observation on July 10, that Kohli needs to understand that different coaches work in different ways and they have their own style.
Kohli’s Test match scores in the four-Test series against Australia (0, 13, 12, 15, 6) was a far cry from the form he had shown in the previous Test series starting with the away series in the West Indies.
He hit five centuries, including four double and came up with a number of good scores, but he was outwitted by the Australian bowlers. He denied he is under any pressure, in particular with the controversy surrounding Kumble’s exit.
“I don’t think there is added pressure because what has to happen will happen, I believe in that regardless of what happens around in the outside world; as a team we aspire to achieve what we want to achieve. All of us have faced hardships in the past, criticism and being criticised is nothing new, we understand that aspect playing the sport.
“I certainly don’t take any added pressure because the responsibility has been given to me. I only started off as a player, wanted to do the best for the team, continue to take up that responsibility, and will continue to do so in the future till the time I am captain or I am kept at this position. So that’s what I see of it, you only have to look at the series ahead; if you focus on all these external factors, it is similar to going out to bat thinking, what if I get out. It can happen in any scenario and so you need to take care of your mindset and move forward.”
Kohli eventually hinted at what may not have existed until the ICC Champions Trophy. “I think understanding and communication is something that works in every walk of life and the dressing room environment is nothing different. You need to have all those aspects for any relationship to work in life and it is not just confined to cricket. We follow the same rules of life that are followed everywhere else. I don’t see anything different that can be elaborated. Everyone has gone through experience of relationships somewhere or the other in their life and the same rules applies here. It is as simple as that, co-ordination and communication.”
