After the historic win against the England team at Lord’s last week, Virat Kohli led Team India are all set to take on the same opponent in the third Test at Headingley. While addressing a press conference on the eve of the 3rd Test, Virat Kohli opened up on how a batsman’s mindset should be while playing in English conditions.
While speaking in this regard, Kohli said: “You never get set in England, you need to keep your ego in your pocket and come when you’re playing here. The conditions in England aren’t like other places where one can get set after they reach 30-40 and be confident of hitting the ball in any direction. When you’re in England, you need to keep batting the way you bat for your first 20 runs, and then repeat the template till you can.”
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Virat Kohli further added: “This is the mental skill and discipline required to succeed in English conditions. If you don’t keep patience, you’ll get out no matter how experienced you may be or how many runs you may have scored. The batsman’s mindset on that particular day is what matters the most. The margin of error being very low, I believe these conditions are the most difficult to bat on, in the entire world.”
The last time India and England played against each other at Headingley was way back in 2002 where Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly made wonders as well. When he was asked if India’s previous performance have motivated the current team, Virat Kohli had a brilliant answer.
He said: “Honestly, I don’t think too much about history. What matters for us as a team is taking good decisions in the present moment we are in. Remembering the past or chasing it is something we don’t believe in as a team.”
Kohli also highlighted that mindset is what matters and that his team largely focuses on keeping their head and confidence high in all situations.
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While speaking about their approach for the next game, Virat Kohli revealed: “We have a set process, we know that we need to follow it and we prepare accordingly. History doesn’t guarantee you anything. If you haven’t won anywhere, it doesn’t mean you still can’t. The same goes for losing as well. It all depends on the mindset, and we as a team look to focus on that.”
However, after a rough patch with the bat, Virat Kohli has moved down to No.5 in the ICC Test batsmen rankings. With the third Test, he will try to get back in form as well which will help his team too.
