Skip to main content

Champions Trophy success hinges on execution for Kohli

India will benefit from a fitter, more mature squad when they begin their defence of the Champions Trophy next month, but the team have little room for error because of the tournament's short format, skipper Virat Kohli said on Thursday.

Kohli, who was part of the side that trumped hosts England in the final at Edgbaston in 2013, is relishing the chance to lead India's title defence and says the squad is well balanced with the right mentality to replicate their earlier success.

"This year the team is a lot fitter, the cricketers are a lot more mature because that was a very young group four years ago," Kohli told reporters after India touched down in London for the tournament starting on June 1.

"It has gained a lot of experience in the last three or four years... We are in a good head-space going into this tournament."

India begin their Group B campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan in Birmingham on June 4, before facing Sri Lanka and South Africa, and Kohli called for complete focus.

"I love the tournament because it represents a challenge from the (word) go. In the ICC Cricket World Cup you have a league and a lot of games to play but here it is group games and then either the semis or you are out."

Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been included in India's squad and although Kohli expects his former captain to thrive during the tournament, he called on the rest in the lower middle order to help ease the pressure on the 35-year-old.

"We needed to strengthen our lower middle order contribution," Kohli said. "I felt too much burden was coming on MS Dhoni in the past couple of years.

"He wasn't able to express himself purely because of the fact that there are not enough guys showing composure to finish off the game with him. But now we are a balanced side," he said.

"It's about execution now. You might have the best side in the world but if you do not execute there is no point having that skill. In a tournament like this it all boils down to how you execute on the day."



via Sify.com http://ift.tt/2r3jlFL
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Virat Kohli and co. leave for West Indies

The Virat Kohli led Indian team left for the West Indies for the four-Test series starting July 21st. The team was accompanied by its newly appointed head coach Anil Kumble and other support staff. The 16-member squad will play a tour game against the West Indies Cricket Board President's XI at Warner Park in Basseterre, St Kitts on July 9 and 10. The journey begins. #TeamIndia leaves for the tour of West Indies. #WIvIND http://pic.twitter.com/ebK1jkoFiN -BCCI (@BCCI) July 5, 2016 That will be followed by a three-day warm-up fixture at the same venue from July 14 to 16. The first Test match will be held at the Vivian Richards Cricket Ground in Antigua from July 21 to 25. The other three Test matches will be held at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica (Jul 30-Aug 3), Darren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in Gros Islet, St Lucia (Aug 9-13) and Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain, Trinidad (Aug 18-22). When India last toured West Indies in 2011, the visitors won the series 1-0....
Post a Comment
Read more

India withdraw Smith protest as boards make peace in DRS row

India have withdrawn an official protest about the actions of Australia captain Steve Smith in the second test as the governing bodies of both countries moved to bring an end to the acrimony surrounding the ongoing four-match series. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had earlier registered a complaint to the International Cricket Council (ICC) over Smith looking to the dressing room for guidance on whether to review an lbw decision during the Bengaluru match. Despite the hosts winning the test to level the series at 1-1 on Tuesday, India skipper Virat Kohli alleged the tourists had indulged in the practice throughout the match, sparking a war of words in the media and a robust response from Australia. The boards released a joint statement on Friday saying the chief executives of both bodies had met in Mumbai on Thursday and agreed to try and bring the focus "back to the game" ahead of next week's third test in Ranchi. "India has always cherished a c...
Post a Comment
Read more

AB de Villiers becomes top ranked batsman in ODIs

Dubai: South Africa's star batsman AB de Villiers on Friday regained the top spot in the ICC player rankings for One-Day International batsmen after leading the list of run-scorers in the recent series against New Zealand. De Villiers's 262 runs in the series, including a highest of 85 in the third ODI at Wellington, have helped him overtake Australia opener David Warner at the top of the ladder, reclaiming the top spot within two months of losing it to India captain Virat Kohli, according to the International Cricket Council's (ICC) statement. The 33-year-old batsman is on 875 points, four points ahead of Warner and 23 clear of Kohli. Among other batsmen, England's Joe Root and Alex Hales are major gainers as they have reached career-best rankings. Root has reached fourth spot after scoring 195 runs including 101 in the final match in Bridgetown against West Indies while Hales, who knocked up 110 in the same match, his fifth century in the last 20 ODIs, has gained...
Post a Comment
Read more