There were concerns regarding the fitness of Virat Kohli ahead of the third Test at Trent Bridge on Saturday, August 18, but in a much-needed boost for India, their captain said, on the eve of the match, that he was “feeling absolutely fine”.
Kohli developed a back problem in the second Test against England at Lord’s, and had to demote himself down the batting order in India’s second innings.
He needed treatment on the field, in fact, and the discomfort seemingly contributed to his dismissal, with India going on to lose by an innings and 159 runs.
India are in do-or-die situation at Trent Bridge, trailing 2-0 and desperately needing a win to save the five-match series. Despite that, Kohli has managed to pick out the positives.
“The only conversation we have had is that the only option is to win this game and nothing else, and you need to show that in your body language and in your intent, the way you prepare for the game, and the way you go about things. It’s all about you feeling positive first. That’s the conversation over the last few days.”
We are looking to win the 3rd Test: @imVkohli
The Indian captain believed the team had its eyes set on the third Test and the priority was to win the game at Trent Bridge.
▶️https://t.co/bAuoLqjQkn pic.twitter.com/VNm7toYqVX
— BCCI (@BCCI) August 18, 2018
“We have to accept that, playing in these conditions, even if you’re past a century, you’re still not fully set. You could get an unplayable delivery at any point, which as a batsman you have to gracefully accept. But if you’re scared, you will be unable to execute the process. The key is to accept the situation and move on quickly.”
However, as tough as the conditions are, Kohli wants his team to put up a fight. “That doesn’t mean that you surrender as soon as you get to the wicket,” he said. “Because before you get a ball with your name on it, you should have the confidence to be able to score runs.
India have decisions to make#ENGvINDhttps://t.co/70CsnlNr4c
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) August 17, 2018
“Our plan is to get runs as a team, whether that comes from 10 batsmen scoring 30 or a lone batsman scoring 200, it doesn’t matter. We have to achieve a team total and if you can contribute even 40-45 runs to that, you should be given credit. That will be the mindset with which we enter this match.
“That approach will ease pressure of personal performance and you will end up respecting the conditions, you won’t try things beyond your abilities. We can speak about a lot of things, what matters is how we perform on the field.”
