On Wednesday, the Indian skipper, Virat Kohli clarified that the Indian team mangement has no doubts regarding the “playing XI” going into the first match of the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup despite the fact that they have lost the ODI series at home as he feels that only one slot is up for grabs.
Before the start of the series, Kohli had said that a couple of places are up for grabs and now it is down to just one man. Talking about the same during the post-match presentation, he said, “We are sorted combination wise. We know our playing XI going into the World Cup. There will be just one change based on condition. When Hardik Pandya will come back, he gives depth in batting and opens up options in bowling. We know where we are going. We are clear about our playing XI.”
While the confusion regarding No 4 position and second wicketkeeper’s position remain, the skipper said that one only place needs to be discussed.
ALSO READ: Records Broken In The Delhi ODI
Describing his point further, Virat said, “We are more or less sorted. Now, it’s about giving guys their roles and expect them to stand up. We are not at all confused. Maybe there’s just one spot we’ve to discuss.”
Kohli said that giving youngsters some game time was always an idea and he will not use it as an excuse for not winning the series.
The Indian skiper explained, “Last three games, the idea was to give fringe guys some (game) time and see how they react. No excuses, we’re expected to raise our standard of cricket. The changes will never be an excuse. We will (still) take a lot of confidence going into the World Cup.”
After the series loss, the Indian skipper is now expecting that his players will reflect on the mistakes made during the series and correct them before going into the World Cup.
ALSO READ: India Loses Their First ODI Series At Home After 2015
Praising his team, Virat said, “It’s good we have had these losses, to correct these at the World Cup. The guys will reflect on this series quite a bit. We have been playing a lot of games on the road. We can be proud of the cricket that we’ve played in the last few months. The series didn’t go well yes, but we’ve played well.”
On the series defeat, Kohli als showered praisies for the Australian side which had “more hunger”.
Kohli said, “We certainly thought it was a gettable target, they got away from us in the end, 15-20 more than what we could have kept them to. Overall, Australia deserved to win, they played with more passion, hunger, and heart. Were brave in pressure situations, the way they raised their intensity meant they were deserving winners.”
