India captain Virat Kohli on Friday said he is not happy with the outside noise around the competition for the opening slot in T20I cricket.
Virat Kohli said it’s good to have strong players competing for spots in the team when he was asked about the three-way race among Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli or the opening slots in the shortest format of the game.
“All 3 are pretty strong players. It’s great to have people who are playing well in the team. It gives you options. It will all boil down to who’s batting better than the other person,” Virat Kohli said after India clinched a series-sealing 78-run win over Sri Lanka in Pune.
“Look, I think people need to stop pitting people against each other. It’s all about a team game. The squad should be strong. I don’t endorse this idea of putting people in the team against each other. I don’t think that’s a healthy sign. People should be happy that we have such strong players performing for the country.”
Shikhar Dhawan’s return to form in the Pune T20I on Friday has created a healthy headache for Virat Kohli and the team management. The India opener, who was ordinary in T20Is in 2019, struck a 36-ball 52 as he stitched a 97-run opening stand with KL Rahul in the 3rd T20I.
Dhawan showed signs of his vintage self as he struck 7 boundaries and a six. On the other hand, KL Rahul followed up his impressive 45 in the 2nd T20I with a 36-ball 54 on Friday.
Meanwhile, Virat Kohli also said the biggest positive to emerge out of the T20I series at home in the ongoing season has been India’s ability to set targets and defend them.
Before the 201 in Friday’s T20I against Sri Lanka, India had set a successful total of 240 after they were sent in to bat in a must-win match against West Indies in Mumbai last year.
“We wanted to plug some of the gaps. I think today as well, we thought 180 at one stage and crossed 200. In Mumbai as well, we thought 200 and crossed 230. We don’t want to be a team which is tentative while batting first, and we want to show the same attitude which we bring in chases while batting first as well,” Virat Kohli said.
