The Indian cricket team have a great opportunity to seal a comprehensive series win over England when the 3-match T20I series gets underway on 26th January, India’s Republic Day in Pune. With the main focus on the Champions Trophy (CT) for the team management, they decided to experiment with the T20 squad and there are a number of new faces in the Indian cricket team.
The likes of Mandeep Singh, Rishabh Pant, Yuzvendra Chahal and Parvez Rasool join the usual suspects in India’s last limited-overs assignment before they defend the CT crown in June.
Virat Kohli answered a number of questions from the media over the possible team combination and the role of Suresh Raina amongst other things.
He was first asked about the transition from Tests to ODIs and finally to T20Is and he said he enjoyed the shortest format, saying it gives you an opportunity to express yourself slightly more than Tests and ODIs, where there is often more pressure.
With the IPL right around the corner, it is a perfect opportunity for other English players apart from Jos Buttler and Sam Billings to showcase their skills ahead of the auction in early February. Kohli spoke about the issue, saying the short window for English players has always been an issue, but it will be interesting to see how things go this time around.
When another media person asked about the possibility of him opening for the Indian team in T20Is like he does for the Royal Challengers Bangalore, he stopped just short of ruling it out but mentioned that this team has the best of the IPL openers and thus it would be unlikely.
Speaking about the role of the new spinners – Yuzvendra Chahal and Parvez Rasool given the recent struggles of Ravi Ashwin in limited-overs cricket, he said, “The guys who are coming in they have done pretty well in the IPL and domestic T20s. They have been economical and bowled in all the right areas. Chahal, obviously, everyone has seen his performances. Rasool, too, played under me in the RCB, so I’ve seen the way he bowls. He is pretty confident. He can bowl with the new ball even against the most attacking batsmen in the world. These are two who have been pretty smart with their bowling, they can build up pressure by bowling dot balls, that can actually get you wickets. This is a breakthrough series for both of them and might be the perfect opportunity for them to seal their spots as the T20 specialists the Indian cricket side will have in the future.
While being asked about Suresh Raina, he said, “He hasn’t played since the T20 World Cup. Obviously we played a lot of Tests in between so it seems like a long gap. We still believe he has enough to contribute in the shorter formats. This series is a series of opportunities for a lot of guys to either get back in the groove or seal their spots in the side. The reason why everyone is included in the squad is because we have faith in them. It’s up to the individual after that to see how eager he is. The selectors and the team management can only do that much by putting faith and picking him in the squad. So I certainly hope he can get back in the groove because I still think he has a lot to offer to Indian cricket, starting with this series.
He also fielded questions about the batting line-up and said that there are no real headaches for the team management as they have a pretty set order for the first match, without revealing who would play at which position.
The moment of the press conference was when he was asked about young English quick Tymal Mills who is supposed to be a T20 specialist. When the media person asked Kohli if he was worried that Mills bowls at over 90 miles an hour, Kohli remarked in typical fashion, saying, “It doesn’t bother me, I have played bowlers who bowl at over 90 miles an hour in the past as well”.
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