India captain Virat Kohli wants specific roles for certain players keeping a two-year time frame, leading upto the 2019 World Cup, in mind.
“For us, it is about the time frame. It is not about which opposition we are playing. You can’t pick and choose. I have never believed in that and we, as a team, don’t believe in that,” Kohli said when asked about whether he will use players depending on the opposition.
“Two years to go for the World Cup and now is the time to give players certain roles to get into the groove and understand what we need to do,” said Kohli.
Certainty
The skipper confirmed that K.L. Rahul is a certainty in that middle-order while Kedar Jadhav and Manish Pandey will be fighting for the remaining middle-order slot.
Rahul will be batting at No. 4, chairman of selectors M.S.K. Prasad had said but skipper doesn’t want any set pattern.
“KL will definitely be playing in the middle-order. We are not going to be predictable or have a set pattern anymore in terms of what we are going to do in ODI or T20 cricket.
Anyone could go anywhere. That’s what we are looking to do,” said Kohli.
He indicated that Pandey may have to wait. “Someone like Manish has done well and has grabbed his opportunities... He has got a hundred in Australia as well, and we know about his talent and what he brings onto the field as well. He is a superfit guy and has a bright future ahead of him. So he will certainly be backed.
“All three guys (including Kedar Jadhav) will have to compete for two spots in the middle-order. There are no guarantees I would say. As long as there is healthy competition, everyone will keep pushing each other and that is healthy for Indian cricket,” the skipper said.
Despite his series-winning knocks in the West Indies, Ajinkya Rahane will have to wait in the wings as a third opener with Shikhar Dhawan having hit a purple patch.
“Shikhar Dhawan is an impact player. Shikhar and Rohit, we know what they have done (achieved) in the past together.
We understand their potential, also Jinks (Rahane) understands that at this stage, he is the third opener in the team,” said Kohli.
Two spinners likely
With regards to the bowling combination for this first ODI, picking three spinners is not an option for the skipper. “I don’t see having three spinners on this track. I have played here in the past. It is probably a three-fast bowler kind of a pitch, where Hardik Pandya is good enough to give us 7-8 overs. So I see only two guys (spinners) taking the field.”
He added, “Now who are those two going to be really depends on what we feel like going in with as a team but having wrist spinners (chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav and leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal) in the team is always an advantage.
