IND vs ENG | Put your ego in your pocket to succeed in England, states Virat Kohli ahead of Headingley Test
Ahead of the third Test in Headlingley, Virat Kohli has said that batsmen have to 'keep their ego in their pocket' to succeed as no one is ever set on English pitches. India are leading the five-match Test series 1-0 before the start of the third Test.
India captain Virat Kohli's wait for 71st Test hundred is on and eyes will again be on him when the third Test in Headingley gets underway on August 25. The two Test matches so far have seen some stunning batting performances from the likes of Joe Root, KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and even Mohammed Shami but Kohli very well knows that English conditions are the toughest to bat.Ā
On the eve of the Headingley Test, Virat Kohli declared that the mantra for a batsman to succeed in England and against the moving ball was to swallow his ego. According to the superstar cricketer, no one is ever set in English conditions.Ā
"You can never say in England that now you are set (on pitch). You have to put your ego in your pocket. The conditions are not same as it is in other places where you reach 30-40 and know that you can pick balls for your shots.Ā
"You have to bat the same way you bat for your first 30 runs and then repeat the same template till it is possible. This discipline and patience is required in England.
"If you are not patient in England you can get out at anytime, no matter how experienced you are or how many runs you have under your belt. You need good decision making because, conditions in England are toughest in the world, in my opinion," Virat Kohli said ahead of the third Test.Ā
Tailenders Mohammed Shami and Japsrit Bumrah partnered for 89 unbeaten runs for the 9th wicket on the final day of the Lord's Test before EnglandĀ got bundled out for 120 in just 51.5 overs to hand India a 151-run win and a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.Ā
Further, none of the members of the current Indian team has played at the Headingley where England have some memorable performances, including the Ashes Test in 2018 wherein Ben Stokes played a blinder to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Kohli said it does not matter to him or his teammates if they have not played a Test at the venue.
"Look I am not an individual who likes to attach much importance to things that are on the outside for us. It's just a Test match that needs to be played against England, be at any stadium, anywhere in the world.
"So we just need to do what we need to do as a team. What has happened here, we are not focussed on that at all. All our energies are focussed on what we want to do as a team in the next five days," Kohli said.
Notably, India played their last Test match at the venue in 2002 and won the match by an innings and 46 runs. Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly had scored a century each in the match.Ā