Playing Pakistan no big deal: Virat
Kohli urges teammates to be passionate but not get emotional in first game
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POLITICAL TENSIONS India-Pakistan matches always generate a massive hype and bring the players under pressure to somehow win. The two teams meet in their opening match of the tournament at Edgbaston on June 4 this time amid heightened political tension between the neighbours.
“Yes, an Indo-Pak game is always exciting. For people watching in the stadium, the game is different. If you ask players from both sides, it is like any other game. We prepare for it like it’s any other game. The atmosphere around the ground is different. But in our heads, playing against any other team, be it England, Australia, South Africa it is all the same,” said Kohli.
REIN IN EMOTIONS
The skipper told a media conference ahead of the team’s departure that it was all normal in the dressing room, with no special motivational talk at team meetings. “There is no need to talk different. There is no need to talk to anyone. It’s not the first time we are playing against them.
“There is no need to prepare differently for the game. We go about it the same way. There is no need to motivate players any differently. If you are playing for India, there is no need for any separate motivation. There is no need to be extra motivated against one particular side.
“Yes, you need to be passionate, but there is no need to get emotional. You need to play with the same kind of passion regardless of who you play against.”
Early in the media conference, Kohli was asked whether he thought India should be playing Pakistan in the current tense atmosphere between the two countries, but did not answer and the official anchoring the event moved to the next question.