Indian skipper Virat Kohli has shown that debutant Ishan Kishan would open the innings instead of Shikhar Dhawan in the second T20I against England in Ahmedabad. Dhawan grapples and was out for 4 from 12 in the first T20I.
Talking after winning the toss and electing to bowl first, Virat Kohli told:
“Two changes to our side. Shikhar Dhawan is missing out. Two debutants, Ishan Kishan is going to make their debut, he is going to open for us. Suryakumar Yadav is also going to make his debut. He makes the place in the team instead of Axar Patel.”
Commend the newcomers, the Indian captain replied that the two players are ready and raring to do having done well in the IPL. Virat Kohli continue:
“These guys are ready. They have done so well in the IPL against world-class bowlers already. They are just waiting for an opportunity. That’s the advantage of having youth on the side. You don’t really need to say much to them. As long as they are in a good headspace, you just unleash them on the field, and back them.”
Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan are set to make their first T20I appearances 🙌#INDvENG pic.twitter.com/1mXZJR5LGr
— ICC (@ICC) March 14, 2021
The track was a little bit up and down when we batted: Virat Kohli
India fight with the bat in the first T20I, managing only 124 for 7. As claimed to Virat Kohli, there was some uneven bounce when they batted first. Clarify his decision to bowl, the 32-year-old claimed:
“Looked like the track was a bit up and down at the time that we batted. There wasn’t much dew around. In the second half, there is going to be a little bit of dew. As much as we want to try things, you want to get a result as well, looking at the conditions in the last game. As I said, variable bounce in the first innings. I think it is better to bowl first and restrict them.”
Virat Kohli also told that batting first or chasing doesn’t hurt them.
“Doesn’t really matter. We are a side looking to get away from templates. For sure, if conditions suit batting second, we will go for it. At the same time, if you lose the toss, especially in a big tournament like the World Cup, you should embrace batting first as well. That is something we are looking to do as an aside. We have improved in the last 10-15 games. In the past 3-4 years, we have better stats batting second, which we want to get away from to go far in big tournaments,” he added.
Also check:- ”Road pe safe rahoge to life mein haste rahoge” Mohammad Kaif shares a message on road safety