KL Rahul is our No.1 choice as opener along with Vijay: Kohli

Virat-Kohli
Virat Kohli has stated that KL Rahul will open the batting for India in the 2nd test against England at Vizag. Image Source: twitter

Internet Desk: Indian test captain Virat Kohli has hinted that opener KL Rahul will open the batting with Murli Vijay in the second Test at Vizag. Which means Gautam Gambhir will have to sit out and could be axed after the selectors select the team for the next three tests.

When asked about KL Rahul’s inclusion into the the team as the 16th member Kohli categorically said, “There is nothing different that we need to do to deal with the situation. We had it pretty clear in our minds that KL is our No.1 choice along with Vijay. And when he is fit at any stage he comes back into the side, we are going to start with him. So, that was the whole idea behind it. We were waiting for him to recover as soon as possible and in the meantime, Gautam got the chances that he got and he played really well in different situations. But that’s how the team combinations go– If you want to play with the combination that you think has the best balance, as far as the team management is concerned and the captain is concerned we want to go with that.”

Under fire after a below-par show on a good batting strip, the Indians spinners will aim for an improved show on a comparatively more helpful track as they take on a gritty England in the second cricket Test, starting in Visakhapatnam on Thursday.

Commenting on the Vizag strip, Kohli said, “Generally in Vizag, pitch has always been something that helps the spinners. So I expect the pitch to play similarly, in the one-dayer here (against New Zealand), the spinners got a few wickets. But at the same time, the quick bowlers also had some assistance early on. It’s a wicket where spinners will find it really nice to bowl on and expect the same going into the game.”

As the battle is expected to boil down to the spinners, it will be interesting whether Virat Kohli wants an extra batsman or an all-rounder in the playing XI. Fielding is another area where the Indians would like to improve after their dropped catches. Regarding the team’s fielding and earlier dropped catches Kohli’s views were, “Catch the ball! We caught really well in last 14-15 months and I said this after the match as well. In Test cricket if you don’t take your chances, the game is very difficult to pull back. That was the main difference rather than skills or pitch. If you take your chances, you have a team down five for 100 compared to three for 250. Then it’s a different ball game altogether. We need to catch well, we need to take our half chances.

Earlier on a spinning track India winning the toss had always piled up a huge total in the first innings to put pressure on the opposition. So when asked how important will be the toss tomorrow? Kohli said, ” toss is not in our control, yes, you get a little advantage initially if you win the toss, but it’s not that you will be put on the back foot and will be a disadvantage. I think toss has its importance but it does not bear much relevance in Test cricket because whichever team plays well and keeps up the pressure can bounce back any time and can dominate the match.

Despite the drawn result, four of England’s batsmen got centuries and spinners had a larger share of 13 wickets, Alastair Cook and Co. have shown that they will not be pushovers unlike New Zealand, who were whitewashed 3-0 in the last series. The famed Indian spinners did not dominate in Rajkot where the battle was won by the England troika of Moeen Ali, Zafar Ansari and leg-spinner Adil Rashid who returned with a match-haul of seven wickets. When asked whether J Yadav will get a chance in place of Amit Mishra the captain said,”Obviously in a series where you are playing against a top side, there is very less room for grooming people as such, if you get what I am saying. You need to figure out as a captain how comfortable you are with the guys you are going to take the field with and how mentally prepared and aware they are walking into the field and how confident they are in picking up those wickets for you”.

When asked whether the team management will include a pace-bowling all rounder just to improve the batting depth, Kohli replied, “That’s up to decide us to sir. We will have a team meeting in the evening, we will talk about all these things. I cannot give any pointers to what we are going to do or who we are going to play. All possibilities are there, too many people in the squad so you might see a few surprises tomorrow.”