'Virat's reply to MS was pithy': Ex-coach reveals unheard story involving Kohli and Dhoni

Former India fielding coach R Sridhar recently released a book where he touched upon various topics from his time with the Men in Blue. In his book, Sridhar revealed a never-before-heard story involving a conversation between Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni ahead of the final day of the first Test match against Australia in December 2014. Apparently, Kohli wanted to chase down a target of 364 on the last day to win the match but Dhoni asked him to keep the team's strength in mind while making that decision. 

'Kohli told me MS Dhoni slid into the seat next to him & said 'Look, Virat...'

In his book 'Coaching Beyond: My Days With The Indian cricket team', Sridhar revealed that Kohli was crystal clear in what the team's approach would be the next morning after Australia declared their second innings at 290-5 and set India a target of 364 to chase on the final day. Kohli wanted the team to go all out in an attempt to chase down the target. However, Dhoni, who had just announced his retirement from Test cricket, was skeptical of the move and had supposedly warned Kohli before the final day of the match. 

"Virat was unequivocal in what India's approach would be the next morning no matter what target they set us to chase. We were already looking at a required rate of 4 an over in case Australia declared overnight, which they did. But Virat was unshakable in his belief that there was no question of battening down the hatches and looking for a draw," Sridhar wrote in his book 'Coaching Beyond: My Days With The Indian cricket team'.

"Virat later told me that on the bus ride back to the hotel, MS Dhoni slid into the seat next to him. 'Look, Virat, you can chase down this total. You are that kind of a player and we all know that but as captain, you will also have to think about what the others. Are the batters capable of playing that positively and attempting to chase down 360 on the final day of a Test match? While making decisions, you will have to consider the strength of the entire team'," Sridhar added.

Sridhar further disclosed Kohli's response to Dhoni's skepticism, saying that the Delhi cricketer's answer to his white-ball captain was very clear and simple. As per Sridhar, Kohli told Dhoni that they will know what the team is capable of only if they try and chase down the target on the final day. 

 "Virat said he saw some merit in what MS had said but he was clear in his mind that positivity was the way forward. Virat's reply to MS was pithy, 'Only if we try, we can know na? Whether we can do it or not. We have not chased 360 on the last day of a Test match ever before because we haven't yet tried to do that. Let us try and give it a shot. Unless we try how will know how good we are?'" he concluded.

As far as the final day is concerned, Kohli smashed his second century of the match and forged a crucial partnership with Murali Vijay. However, despite Kohli and Vijay's efforts, India succumbed to Nathan Lyon's spell and lost the match by 48 runs. 

Image: AP