Glenn McGrath suggests India should not be dependent only on Virat Kohli

Glenn McGrath suggests India should not be dependent only on Virat Kohli

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Glenn McGrath suggested that India should not be dependent only on Virat Kohli in England and insisted that there are other quality players in the team as well. McGrath warned Kohli of James Anderson threat and was confident that Bhuvneswar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah would do well in England.

Kohli has grown as a player and now is a far more experienced player since the last time he had toured England for a Test series, arguably his worst tour to any country since his red-ball debut in 2011. In the tour, Kohli had managed to score a total of 134 runs in six innings, but since then, he has been in a league of his own. However, Australian great Glenn McGrath warned Kohli of the threat that an in-form James Anderson could possess and insisted that he would be looking forward to the contest between the duo.Ā 

"Kohli is a more experienced player now. Quality player, no doubt about that. But English conditions are very tough. When you have got a bowler like Jimmy Anderson, who is bowling well now, it is going to be hard work. You got to be prepared to work hard. Kohli is a quality player so I am looking forward to that contest," McGrath told media persons as quoted by TOI.Ā 

On the tour of South Africa, Kohli became the highest scoring captain for India and has so far scored 3456 runs in Tests as captain and surpassed the previous best of 3454 runs of Dhoni. Such has been the dominance of Kohli that India has heavily relied on their captain in the recent past. McGrath suggested that India should not be dependent only on their captain, who has been the mainstay in the batting lineup for theĀ team since he has taken over the captaincy of Tests from Dhoni and reflected that there are other quality batsmen in the team as well.Ā 

"You always want your best batsman performing. However, it also gives another batsmen a chance to put his hand up and there are still some quality batsmen there, some quality players there. If India are really depending on one player, they have got it wrong...," he added.

While Cheteshwar Pujara didn't have a great run during the four-day games in England, McGrath stated that the experience would help him in getting used to the conditions.Ā 

"I have not seen what the conditions are like in the UK. Pujara, even though he hasn't got runs, he will be there. Just being used to the conditions, I think that will help him," he opined.

On the basis of some brilliant performances in the ODIs, Jasprit Bumrah got included in the Test side that toured South Africa. In the Test as well he was impressive with his control picking up 14 wickets in just 3 matches. India's other premier fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who is a great practitioner of the swing bowling, has also shown his prowess in the Tests by picking up 63 wickets in 21 matches. McGrath was confident that speedsters Bhuvneswar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah would leave a mark in England due to their ability to control the ball well.

"Bhuvi and Bumrah. They have got pretty good control. That's what you need, especially in England. The Dukes ball has a pronounced seam. If you get the ball in the right areas consistently, then you are going to do well. The ball will do a little bit, so yeah. They will do well," McGrath said.

Reflecting on the importance of the adaptabilityĀ in the British country,Ā the Aussie added, "I think a lot of it depends on how the players adapt. You got to adapt a lot quicker these days. During my time, we used to get a couple of tour matches. They will have to adjust and adapt quicker. Obviously, there aren't enough tour matches to really get used to the conditions. They will just have to rely on past experience."Ā 

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