India captain Virat Kohli says he doesn't think the IPL will have any influence on World Cup selection.
"We need to be absolutely clear of what team we want for the World Cup. I don’t see anything changing on how the IPL goes for any of the players,” Kohli said here on Friday.
He rated the spin duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav as the strongest in the world right now.
Impact bowlers
“These guys are impact bowlers in the middle-overs, they have been outstanding,” he said.
On a suggestion he should be batting at No. 4, Kohli said if that was what the team needed he would be more than happy to do it. "I have batted at that slot before and my game doesn't change, because the template is the same. I always back myself in any position," he said.
"I think the Aussies know the conditions here as many of them play in the IPL. So, we have to be at our absolute best.
“The focus is on winning the series and not just experimenting. We will continue to experiment. We always want to improve as a team,” he said.
On Rishabh Pant getting more chances in the series, Kohli said it would depend on the combination. “I don’t think playing a bowler short is a good idea. Because with the extra fielder in till the 40th over it becomes very difficult to get a few guys to chip in with a few overs here and there.
“We will have to work out the batting combination to try and give game-time to the guys we want to. But, I don’t see the bowling combination changing," he said.
On the 11th anniversary of leading India to the Under-19 World Cup win, a smiling Kohli said: “That was a long time ago. The one thing I remember from that time was we always had the belief we could do it.”
Kohli was all praise for K.L. Rahul.“When he plays well, he operates at a different level. It’s good he’s in great nick and hopefully he can carry it forward.
