Published 16:35 IST, October 13th 2019
Virat Kohli wins the Man of the Match for 254, puts team above self
Indian captain Virat Kohli won the Man of the Match award for his unbeaten knock of 254 runs in the first innings of the second Test match against South Africa
- SportFit
- 3 min read
India beat South Africa by an innings and 137 runs in the second test match to seal the three-match Test series 2-0. Virat Kohli was awarded the man of the match for his unbeaten knock of 254 runs.
'Think more for the team now'
Virat Kohli while speaking in the post-match presser about his unbeaten knock said, "It's getting the responsibility of being captain. If you go out planning a double hundred you won't get it, but if you go out planning to bat for five sessions, the double hundred will come. The mindset change is the only reason for getting big scores. Before that, I used to think from a personal point of view, and I put pressure on myself but I think the moment you start thinking about the team, all the pressure goes away. Kohli also spoke about his partnership with Rahane, which really helped India put on an unbeatable total of 601 runs in the first innings. he said, "I really enjoy batting with Rahane. I think he has a great mindset and we communicate really well with each other. We run well between the wickets and both of us have a solid game. When we have a parntership invariably we take the team forward and that has been the mantra of our success together. Whenever we have batted in test cricket, we are probably the most successful Indian pair and the only reason is that both of us think for the team. Having him bat alongside also keeps me focussed."
Improvements over the last four years
Kohli also spoke about how the team's defensive strategy has improved over the last four years, especially with players such as Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal. He said, "When we started off as a group we were at No.7 (in the Test rankings). The only way was up. We laid down a few things, saying that if you want to take Indian cricket forward, these are the things that are expected of each one of us. We have to work hard every day in practice and don't waste time and have a purposeful practice session. He added, "We are lucky to have a group of players we have in the last three-four years. It's amazing to see that hunger and passion for all the guys to keep improving. Mentioning Saha especially, he was a bit nervous coming into Vizag, but this game he kept beautifully. Ashwin as well stepped up beautifully coming back."
Updated 17:19 IST, October 13th 2019