Kohli bats for Saha as Test ’keeper

New Test captain Virat Kohli has thrown his weight behind Wriddhiman Saha (in pic) to replace M.S. Dhoni, who has already hanged up his gloves, behind the stumps. Photo: R. Ragu

He may have taken charge of the Indian Test side recently but Virat Kohli is already on the look-out for players to complete his team.

With M.S. Dhoni hanging up his gloves, Kohli has thrown his weight behind Wriddhiman Saha to replace him behind the stumps.

“We need to appreciate what Dhoni has done, for the Indian team and Indian cricket. It is not easy to replace him and we are lucky to have talented players such as Saha, Parthiv Patel, Sanju Samson and Dinesh Karthik.

“Saha has been with the Indian team for a long time and filled in whenever Dhoni is unavailable. He is a world-class keeper and has also worked very hard on his batting. He is 30, supremely fit and he deserves a chance with the team and a longer rope. I feel he can be India’s wicket-keeper for at least next 5-6 years,” Kohli said at an event here on Saturday.

Learning the ropes

Admitting that being captain of the team was different from being one of the players, Kohli said he was still learning the ropes.

“I enjoy the role. As captain, I like to give ownership of the team to every player. Every one has a role. I like taking that responsibility. It doesn’t add to pressure, instead it helps me get more focused and improve my performance. I am still learning the skill of managing the team,” Kohli said.

His team Royal Challengers Bangalore won its second game in five outings on Friday with a clinical batting performance from Kohli and A.B. de Villiers. The team’s third talisman, Chris Gayle, however, is yet to come good in the tournament but Kohli is unperturbed.

“We want Gayle to bat freely. He puts too much pressure on himself. He did brilliantly for RCB last year and he feels it is his responsibility to perform all the time and also thinks the team expects the same from him. All this only adds to the pressure and is not fair to any player.

“It was a conscious decision for me and AB to bat close to each other. Me and AB understand each other and we do not have to say much to each other. We decided to take responsibility and take the team through to the mid overs and allow Gayle to play his natural game,” Kohli said.