If one listens to captain Virat Kohli discuss his immediate goals and vision for the young team that he is in charge of, “staying positive” and “dominate” are the words that dominate most of his answers. Staying positive and dominating bowlers is what he is most comfortable doing and there is little surprise that he wants the Indian Test team to move forward along the same lines.
Soon after India wrapped up the victory over West Indies by an innings and 92 runs to register their biggest win overseas with R. Ashwin taking a seven for 83 to go with his century in the first innings, Kohli stressed on the need to play in the same aggressive fashion. Once he was done analyzing the game that got over in four days, the 27-year-old started setting his sight on the next game to be played in Jamaica from July 30-August 3.
With a massive win in the first Test of the four-match Test series, Kohli now has the room to execute his plan and set an agenda for the big home season to follow. With India suffering losses in the first Test during previous Test tours of Australia and Sri Lanka, it was always a catch-up job that his boys were forced to perform. Now, India are in a position to set pace and call the shots.
“If we have a chance to win 4-0, then why not. We don't need to get complacent. If we end up getting a 2-0 lead, it's not that we would be playing for a draw in the next two Tests.
“As we know, if we learn to win Test matches, then we'll learn how to win Tests everywhere. We will learn how to play in different situations and we will know exactly what to do when a certain situation is going a certain way.”
He added that the biggest change that he has been observing is the change in mindset. “As I've said before we are not at a stage now where we need to come and improve. We should be ready enough in international cricket to start dominating Test matches and win those crucial situations and sessions. That's how we become a better team. If you think we are going to keep learning every series, learning every game, we will never get that hunger and that mindset to win games from difficult situations. We need to challenge ourselves a little bit, which this team has been willing to do and which is a wonderful sign. The way we finished the Test, it all panned out pretty nicely.”
Kohli credited the extended preparation as a big factor in India’s overwhelming performance in the Antigua Test. Before arriving in Antigua, India played two practice games in St. Kitts. “The preparations we had; coming here and understanding the conditions, adjusting to the time difference was a big factor at the start. Conditions were very humid, they were hot, and it helped us to get that time to practice. We got two weeks here, which helped us a lot.”
He also hinted that India had found a template that they can hope to persist with in Test cricket. It is to play with five batsmen, give them more responsibility, pick the five best bowlers according to the conditions. “We have spoken about one thing, that we have the skill and ability to declare innings more often than not rather than struggling to get to 350 without lower order. So that's the kind of mindset we need to play with. You know when you start off with five batsmen, obviously you need to take more responsibilities.”
The Antigua Test also witnessed attacking field for both the fast bowlers and the spinners. While the fast bowlers had three slips, gully and a leg slip and a short mid-on, the spinners had fielders around the bat. “The one thing that I try to do is think as a batsman, which is very important. You can read a batsman's body language and figure out where he is trying to score his runs.
“It's all about getting into the batsman's head and creating that pressure to make him make that mistake. That's what Test cricket is all about. It's not just about what's happening with the bat or ball on the pitch, it's about what's happening in the head as well. It's about how you create momentum for the bowler and the environment around a batsman where he makes that mistake.”
