ICC World Cup 2019 | It’s not a contest between me and Amir, asserts Virat Kohli
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Ahead of the game against Pakistan, Virat Kohli has stated that he doesn’t want to be involved in the “TRP battle” that media is making and added that the game is not a contest between him and Mohammed Amir. Kohli has also added that Pakistan clash not more special than other World Cup matches.
India will take on Pakistan on the backdrop of a lot of political tension between both the countries and the media has hyped beyond point to such a level that every match-up are also considered as a battle of its own. The Kohli-Amir match-up is one of the most thrilling ones this World Cup and when Kohli was asked about the highly-billed duel against the Pakistan pacer, he played it down.
“I don’t want to say anything for TRP. I had spoken about Rabada as well earlier, I just see the ball, whether it’s red or white, it’s not a contest between me and Amir, these are not things that come to mind,” Kohli said in the pre-match press conference, reported PTI.
The game has a lot of stakes involved especially because of the call for boycott after the Pulwama attack. That is bound to add pressure on the Indian team but the skipper asserted that the atmosphere in the Indian dressing room is no different than before any other match.Â
“We have literally discussed nothing different. The atmosphere in the dressing room is the same. No one game is more important or more special than the other,” he said.
“The game starts at a certain time tomorrow and ends at a certain time, it won’t be lasting a lifetime. Our tournament doesn’t end tomorrow. The focus always is on the bigger picture,” he added.
Pakistan have always pulled off their unpredictable side to the fore and one could never be sure about which side will arrive on any given day. However, Kohli said that they will not select their playing XI by looking at the opposition.
“We know they have a lot of talent in their team, but we are focussing on what we need to do. We believe if we play to our best, we can beat any team in the world. The conditions and length of the game will dictate the composition. We are not looking at the opposition to select our XI,” he added.Â
When the Indian skipper was asked to elaborate on the tensest and funniest moments that he has in his mind from India-Pakistan clashes, he went on to say, “My most tense moment against Pakistan was in the 2009 Champions Trophy. I had just flown in and played a bad shot. I couldn’t sleep till 6 am, thinking my career is over.”
“The funniest moment was in the 2011 World Cup semifinal. I was at the non-striker’s end and heard a conversation between Wahab Riaz and Shahid Afridi, the details of which I can’t go into here,” he said.
