In Test cricket, balance in the team is very important, says Virat Kohli

Team India will go up against Joe Root & Co. in the first game of a five-match Test series that will begin tomorrow at Edgbaston. Although the Indians began their UK tour with T20I series wins against Ireland and England, they suffered ODI series defeat 2-1 earlier this month. The Indians, under the leadership of a determined Virat Kohli, will head into the upcoming series looking for nothing less than a win for sure.

However, the 29-year old batsman kept his cool in the pre-match conference as he revealed that he had immense faith in the team management and selectors. Kohli went on to highlight the importance of a sense of balance in the team for the crucial series ahead of the visitors.

“It all depends on gut feeling. Go ahead with what the management feels. We take a decision and then don’t look back at them, whether they come off or not. In Test cricket, team balance is important and we’ll discuss it today,” Kohli said at the press conference.

During India’s last tour of England in 2014, Kohli had managed to score only 134 runs across 10 innings but the Indian batsman insisted he did not place too much importance on numbers anymore.

“Back in the day, when I did not know better, I used to read a lot... it used to bother me,” he said, about the media expecting him to deliver with the bat on this tour. “But now I don’t know and I have no idea of what is happening around me. I have to focus on what I have to to,” the skipper added.

The RCB skipper also said that his young squad were in a good frame of mind ahead of the Test series and he hoped the players who featured in the limited-overs series are now more accustomed to the British pitches.

“We don’t think about these things. We need professionalism more than feeling like the underdog or the favourite. We have to execute.”

“Our bowlers have come a long way from the last time they toured here,” he said. “We are pretty happy we have so much depth in our bowling. They have understood that it is not about out-bowling the guy at the other end but about helping him. How we played in SA gave us a lot of confidence. Countries like England and Australia provide a difficult test but we like tests. We have to be positive about it,” Kohli said.