Veteran Indian wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik backs Virat Kohli ahead of the World Test Championship Final, saying he knows what it takes to be a title-winning team. India will take on New Zealand in the inaugural edition of the WTC Final from Friday in Southampton.
Virat Kohli will try to lend his hands on his first ICC trophy since captaining the Indian team. He took his to the finals of Champions Trophy 2017 but fell short in the final against Pakistan. However, Kohli will try to win the title this time around.
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“I think it will mean a lot to him. He has won the World Cup in the U-19 format, so he has tasted success in a multi-nation tournament. He was part of a World Cup-winning team in 2011. So, he knows what it means to be part of winning teams. He is always challenging himself and trying to push Indian cricket to greater heights,” Karthik told Sports Today on eSalaamCricket.
Karthik praised Team India’s effort of reaching the finals despite the points system changing midway during the league matches. India’s series win in Australia earlier this year played a huge role in claiming a spot in the final while the home series win over England confirmed their place in the marquee clash against New Zealand.
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“The WTC is played over two years, so probably that intensity of playing a World Cup is not there. The dynamics are a lot different, but India can proudly say that they have been pushed to the brink in terms of how suddenly the rules and they had to come up with a different approach to what they need to do in terms of reaching the final,” Karthik added.
India announced their playing XI on the eve of the final. India opted to go with five bowlers – Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and the pace trio of Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami. Shubhman Gill and Rohit Sharma will open the batting with Pujara, Kohli, Rahane and Pant to follow.
