Kohli hails Prithvi, Umesh show after win
India skipper Virat Kohli was effusive in his praise of Man-of-the-Series Prithvi Shaw on Sunday saying he was not even 10 per cent of the Mumbai youngster when he was 18. Shaw scored a hundred on debut in Rajkot and followed that up with a quick-fire 70 and an unbeaten 33 here.
“Any of us weren’t even 10 per cent of what (he is) when we were 18, 19. He has to build on that. Playing like that in his first series is a great sign for Indian cricket,” Kohli said at the post match media conference on Sunday.
“He has grabbed his chance beautifully. Looks like someone who can get you off to a kind of start you require. And he is not reckless, he is very confident about his game. You might feel that he will nick one now and then he hardly nicks the ball. That we saw in England as well. He was batting in the nets, really attacking, but in control; rare control against new ball is great. For the rest of the batting, learning from the last tour, we want to improve collectively,” Kohli added.
A series against West Indies at home where both Tests ended in three days was surely not be the right kind of preparation India was looking for ahead of their series against Australia. But Kohli took positives from it. “Prithvi was outstanding, Rishabh was really fearless. I know the conditions were not as challenging as they might get in future (in Australia) but in Test cricket, the first and the most important thing is confidence and understanding that you can score runs at the Test level,” Kohli said.
The other big positive Kohli took from the series was Umesh Yadav, who has the second-best
strike rate in the world after Jason Holder among bowlers who have taken more than 15 wickets in 2018.
Umesh’s 10-wicket haul in the match was also the third time an Indian pacer had taken 10 in a Test at home. Javagal Srinath’s 13/132 against Pakistan in Kolkata and Kapil Dev’s 11/146 against Pakistan in Chennai in 1980 are the two above him.
“Outstanding,” Kohli said. “With Shardul breaking down very early, to bowl like that in both innings was great. It showed the kind of fitness he has, to keep running in and bowl 140 clicks throughout the game and picking wickets.
“This was a standout performance in his career and something that he can build on,” Kohli added.
“Not many people realise but he is a very, very talented bowler. He can bowl you unplayable deliveries every now and then which we experience in the nets all the time. It’s just that he is gaining more confidence about his own game. To have four guys bowling at over 140kph and who can pick you wickets is something we want to keep as a consistent part of our team,” Kohli said.
CAPTAIN BACKS UMESH FOR AUSTRALIA SERIES
“Four Tests in Australia can be brutal because the ball doesn’t do much like England. So you have to come in and run in all day and hit the right area with pace. From that point of view, Umesh is right up there to be featuring in Australia because he has got the pace, he has the got the fitness levels to run in all day,” Kohli said.