India captain Virat Kohli on Wednesday said that his team is as excited to tour South Africa as they were in 2013, adding that the aim for the team was to try and do what they could not the last time around.
India had lost the two-match Test series 0-1 during their last tour to South Africa four years ago.
Speaking at the pre-departure press conference before the two-month-long tour beginning next week, Kohli said his team had matured a lot in the past two years and were prepared of the challenges ahead.
“Back in 2013 we were excited to play in South Africa. We were looking forward even then to take up the challenge,” Kohli said.
“The bowlers then were more experienced than what South Africa have now. We did very well against them. We came close to winning a Test. Our batting has come a long way, our bowling has come a long way. The mindset is still the same. We want to go back and try to do what we could not the last time around,” he added.
India head coach Ravi Shastri said that the team was mentally ready for the vagaries of the overseas tours as he felt the team members were gelling well and have spent considerable time together.
Shastri added that the tours of South Africa, England and Australia in 2018 will help improve the current Kohli-led outfit.
“The team has been together for four to five years,” he said. “That experience will stand them in good stead. The conditions will be testing, but the upcoming period will define this Indian cricket team. Tours of South Africa, England and Australia coming up in the next one and a half years will help make this a better cricket team.”
‘Switching back to cricket not difficult’
India’s preparations for the overseas tour were left hampered due the scheduling of a long full tour against Sri Lanka at home. Skipper Kohli had expressed his displeasure at the lack of preparation time ahead of the crucial trip to South Africa. He eventually opted to skip the limited-overs leg of the home series in which time he tied the knot to long-time beau and Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma.
Asked about the difficulties a cricketer faces while returning to the grind of international cricket after an important event in life like a wedding, Kohli said despite the three-week break he was aware of the important tour that will follow, adding that he had not stopped fitness training during the time away from the action.
‘I was away for something which was much more important,” Kohli said. “It is a period that will remain special for both of us. Switching back to cricket is not difficult at all.
“Cricket is in my blood. Getting back to the professional front is not hard at all. It is not like I haven’t done anything in the past three weeks. I have been training to get back to playing in south Africa. Somewhere in the back of the mind I was aware there something important coming up, so mentally I am prepared,” Kohli added.
No practice game, no worry
Due to the paucity of time, the India team management has decided to skip a scheduled warm-up game in South Africa. The team will instead travel with a couple of specialist pacers to bowl in the nets on specially prepared “fast wickets” at a venue in the African nation.
Shastri was unfazed by the lack of preparation and chose to skim over the issue.
“All the boys are looking forward to the challenge in South Africa. That is the beauty of their profession, wanting challenges and embracing them,” Shastri said.
“We toured Australia, three years ago and did a pretty good job. We have done well in England. Sri Lanka in 2015 had good tracks, especially the last two Tests where the ball seamed and swung. So, preparation has been good,” Shastri added.
Kohli said the number days from now and the first Test, were enough to get used to the conditions, despite the lack of a practice match.
“We have plenty of days to get accustomed to the conditions,” Kohli said. “We prefer to stay in the practice session for longer duration. We sometimes have multiple sessions in a day to replicate scenario’s of a Test match and see how the conditions will vary in a day,” the captain added.
Kohli said, the team had nothing to prove to anyone and were realistic in their approach to the upcoming tour.
“We have got rid of all the mental pressures of touring abroad and wanting to prove to people. We do not want to prove anything to anyone and our duty is to go out there, give our 100 per cent effort for the country and get the result that we want to,” Kohli said.
“We need to be realistic with what we are doing and that the only way we will be staying in the present and execute the things we want to. We are going there to just play cricket and it does not matter whether we are in South Africa, Australia, England or India,” Kohli added.
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