If there is one thing that has been constant throughout the three match Test series against Sri Lanka, it is dominance. Be it the batsmen hammering centuries or the bowlers backing them with match-winning bowling performances, this team has played like the No.1 Test side in the world. Their 3-0 series sweep is among their most dominant ever across all conditions. India won the first Test by 304 runs and finished off the remaining two handing over innings defeats to the hosts. That in the captain’s view was pleasing.
“In the last game at Colombo we enforced the follow on but we did not execute the things that we wanted to the best of our abilities. Plus the opposition played well. This time we took it as an opportunity, we spoke about it in the morning, treat this as day 5 of an away tour, probably a series defining Test match where we'll have to get an opposition out within 60-70 overs. So take that attitude on the field and try to wrap up things and understand how that can be done,” Kohli said. “We wouldn't have situations all the time where we'll get 600, 500 and then we'll have a chance to bat again and give a large total. Sometimes we will have to enforce the follow on and it could be series defining. It could be something special for the team. So try making those habits from here on, let's start being a bit more uncomfortable as a team, embrace pressure situations, look to put in that extra effort for the team.
The guys were willing to give it all, and we took this as an opportunity to learn as a group together. So we keep finding different situations and scenarios where we can challenge ourselves as a team first before we look at the opposition. Again today was another opportunity for us to challenge ourselves and I'm glad the way the guys stood up for it.”
That they did. To get a result out of a Test match in under three days was no easy feat and Kohli was proud for the way his team stood up to the ocassion. India last played a Test series against Australia in March and the feeling to get back in whites was no different as it was a few months back, Kohli said. “The reason we've been succesful so far is because we treat a cricket game like a cricket game, which is executing the abilities that we can execute to the best of our potential, not looking at who we are playing against. I think that is the attitude that has kept people hungry.
“You know you won't see reckless cricket regardless of who we are playing. We want to consolidate every situation, we want to make sure that we're correcting things along the journey and that's the mindset we want to take forward also. We’ve played really good cricket to win 3-0. We put constant pressure on the opposition to make sure we win more sessions during a Test match and that has led us to win the series with a clean sweep. It makes us really proud as a team.”
What has been even more noteworthy is the way the players have grabbed chances with both hands. Kuldeep Yadav made full use of his opportunity in Ravindra Jadeja’s absence, and Test debutant Hardik Pandya too announced himself in whites in grand style. Kohli reserved some special praise for the all-rounder. “His performance has spoken for itself. People might have problems with the kind of demenour he has or the belief he carries with himself, but we certainly in the team have no doubts on that. We let him be who he is, we let him express himself. You know, a guy who can get a fifty and a hundred in his first three games batting at number 8 has to have something special in him. And the innings that he played here, after being 320/6, it wasn't just mad slogging. He actually used his brain and batted with the tail which I think is a great sign for us. He brings in great balance to the team, he's a gun fielder and he gives you those crucial breakthroughs. He's very handy with the ball and we know what he can do with the bat as well. All doubts aside from the outside, inside the team we absolutely have 120% faith in him.”
