India’s head coach, Ravi Shastri reckons Team India had a brilliant 2019 and 2020 is the year of the World T20, but before that, they will be facing the Kiwi challenge as the team has made its priorities very clear. The longest format of the game is closest to their hearts and winning on foreign soil is what they call the real deal.

Speaking to IANS in his first interview of the new decade, Shastri speaks about Kohli’s love for Test cricket, the day he realized that this Indian bowling would be the best in the world. He said, “More than anything else when a player like him endorses the game in an open manner where he is very clear what he wants out of Test cricket and that he enjoys that format the most. So, as a young kid watching the game, when they see a superstar embracing Tests, you will want to emulate him whether you are an Indian, English, Australian, Pakistani or Sri Lankan.”

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What helps Kohli and Shastri realize their dream of being the top performers in Test cricket is a team of brilliant bowlers led by Jasprit Bumrah and ably assisted by the likes of Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, and Umesh Yadav. And the New Zealand series will once again need them to hold the fort in conditions known to help fast bowling.

Talking about the same, Shastri said, “I was very clear in South Africa after we had a team meeting after the first day of the Cape Town Test. Then seeing what they did in the second innings, I had no doubt in my mind that if they carry on in this fashion, very soon you will be an attack that will have to be contended with. The fact that they learned to bowl as a unit, you know made all the difference. You understand the situation and go with a common game plan.”

While the bowlers have been praised by one and all, an area of constant discussion has been the questions aimed at Kohli the skipper at regular intervals. But Shastri had no doubts regarding the leadership skills of Kohli. The Indian head coach was also asked about the differences in opinions when the two sit down to discuss strategies.

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Shastri replied, “There is always room for fresh ideas. There will be discussions on that and it cannot be that everything you say is right. This team is open to reasoning and even the youngest member in the team can come up with a thought and at the end of the day, we put our heads combined to see what is best in the interest of the team.”