His first venture as the limited-overs captain of India has come out as a satisfying experience, feels Virat Kohli as the host completed a 2-1 ODI series win on Sunday.
Despite his team losing by a mere five runs in the last match at the Eden Gardens against England, Kohli was not preoccupied about not accomplishing a whitewash and instead counted on the positives that he gained from winning the series.
The new captain was particularly happy with the balance of youth and experience in the team.
“I am very pleased to see Kedar (Jadhav) and Hardik (Pandya) bat the way they did against England (they added 104 runs for the sixth wicket in the last match). And I am very pleased to see Mahi (M.S. Dhoni) and Yuvraj (Singh) bat again and string in that big partnership (at Cuttack),” Kohli said after the match.
“There were lot of positives for us as a team. These guys have shown character and stuck it out when under pressure. For me these are the stand-outs from the series.”
The Indian captain made no bones in saying that the way Jadhav played immediately after making his ODI debut in Pune, where he scored a century, tells a lot about the ability of the player. The 75-ball 90 that took India so close to a victory in the final ODI also speaks about the consistency of the player, Kohli said.
He was also happy with the strength Pandya added to the team as an impact all-rounder.
“All the teams around the world have fast-bowling all-rounders who give them a lot of balance. It allows you to play that extra batsman, I guess, and allows you to still play two spinners, two seamers and if the guy is good enough, he does the job for you,” said Kohli looking at Pandya’s 56 and the fine last spell where he returned figures of three for 21 off six overs.
Assessing his team’s performance, Kohli said: “This series win makes it all the more special as we were up against a side that probably has the best balance going around in ODI cricket. They have people batting till No. 10, bowling all-rounders and good quick bowlers.”
