Their patchy performance has stuck out like a sore thumb during the first two Tests and India skipper Virat Kohli urged his batsmen to complement the efforts of his bowling unit in the upcoming Boxing Day Test against Australia starting Wednesday.
While Kohli gave a batting masterclass on a challenging track in Perth, Cheteshwar Pujara had played a decisive role in team’s win Adelaide but other batsmen (apart from Ajinkya Rahane in flashes) have not contributed much unlike bowlers, who have picked 40 wickets in four innings.
“Very important [for batsman to put a price tag on their wicket] because everyone can see that our bowlers are performing very well. But as a batting unit we need to put on the runs required because our bowlers will struggle to win us matches with the kind of totals we are putting up with the bat now,” Kohli said on Tuesday.
“I think our aim should be to put up enough runs so that bowlers can put us in a match winning position if batting first. If batting second, we should aim to take the lead or stay close to the opponent’s score because if you stay close to the big score of the opponent or take a good lead then you can capitalise in the second innings. I will definitely say that we need to step up as a batting unit but will not want to pinpoint any individual and what he needs to do,” Kohli said.
Read: India name their playing XI a day ahead of Boxing Day Test
Read: Hope for a lively pitch, says Virat Kohli
Kohli has played a Boxing Day Test twice before and had words of praise for “an iconic Test match.”
“It’s amazing. Obviously day one is the most anticipated date and we expect lot of people to come in,” Kohli. who made a century in 2014 in the drawn game, said. “May be 80,000 plus. I have experienced that twice before and definitely a magical day to step on the field, have those national anthems of both teams. You can sense the energy on the stadium. For me, that’s my personal favourite moment of Boxing Day when the anthems are sung and you are standing in the field and there are so many people around you. It is one of the most iconic Test matches and we are very happy to be part of that.”
While Kohli has had success overseas in the calendar year with the bat, rest of the batting lineup has struggled. He didn’t think there was a key to cracking the mystery but the Indian captain said mental preparation was important.
“Personally I think there is no real secret. What has worked for me is being comfortable where I am playing. Not to necessarily looking at how difficult the wicket is to play but looking to feel comfortable there then you are more or less in control of what you want to do. As a batsman, if at any stage, if you are hesitated or nervous of the pace and bounce then you definitely gonna get hit. That’s something you sit in your room and work on. Its not something that you can just arrive and feel on that particular day. that’s something I work on, the mindset bit. I think that’s probably the only and the most important thing to get into that frame of mind where you feel like you are ready enough to get runs anywhere and that takes a constant effort on a daily basis. There is no real secret. It’s just about getting into a positive state of mind.”
— Kohli on overseas success as a batsman
Excerpts from rest of the press conference:
[Adelaide and Perth] are in the past. It’s Test cricket at the highest level when two tough teams are going at each other there would be things that happen on the field. I think its important to leave it there and focus on the next Test match. We definitely not looking to find something to talk about. So, you just want to play good competitive cricket. And when both teams are passionate and desperate to win obviously those things happen on the field. As I said, as long as the line is not crossed, you have no issues. I am sure Tim and myself both understand what happened. We don’t want to do things unnecessarily. We want to lead out teams well and play good cricket which public wants to see.
Is it about seeing the rest of the series as two more matches, with the series level 1-1?
Look, again as a team, I don’t think whether you are 2-0 up, 2-0 down or 1-1, what’s happened in the past has no significance at all on what’s going to happen in the next two Tests or may be the next one. So the key is to stay in the moment, stay in the present. You have to remember why you won the first Test, which was because of us being in the present moment. We didn’t have any Test matches that went by. So, you just have to repeat those same things. The team that stays in the present more... wins sessions, wins balls, wins overs... more or less ends up winning the Test. That’s all we are going to focus on, play consistently good cricket and not get excited or too taken aback by the situations altered during the course of the Test match. What happened in the past is actually irrelevant because you have to stay in the present.
How much is it a mental battle when you come to Australia?
As I said, it’s hardly anything technical. If you are convinced in your mind that you can do it, your body starts reacting accordingly. So, it’s all about getting into that frame of mind as a team, as individuals when we prepare for our own skill sets also. If we are totally convinced stepping on to the park that we can do it, we can definitely do it. I feel its 80% mental and 20% technical when you go to any country away from your conditions to play. And a team that stays in a good zone for long enough, they end of doing special things. We are definitely working on that aspect to stay in that zone and keep pushing ourselves to play good quality cricket and be competitive on all day of a Test match. And when we sense an opportunity to get a result, we go for that opportunity. But the most important thing is the mental set up according to me.
On whether the Indian batsmen have new plans to counter Nathan Lyon
He is a very good bowler. It’s not now but we have been practising to face him well from the first Test itself because he has been bowling in the right areas consistently and so we have to make plans to explore our scoring options against such a bowler because if keeps bowling the same line and length for a long time then he becomes more dangerous. You always try to figure out who is bowling well in a particular series and try to find ways to plan against them. It’s a big thing for a spinner to bowl that well and be consistent in Australia. We are taking it as a challenge and definitely want to improve ourselves. We have put that effort in practice and what would matter is how we execute it on the field. As cricketers, you always try to not get out the same way.
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