With home season done and dusted, Kohli now wants to win abroad

INDIA must not rest on their laurels after a highly successful home season and must focus on winning abroad, captain Virat Kohli said after their 2-1 series win over Australia yesterday.

The Indian team retained the ICC Test Championship mace and pocketed a $1 million cash award after cementing their top ranking with a seventh series victory in a row.

India’s eight-wicket win at Dharamsala marked the end of their 13-Test home season, which included 10 wins, two draws and a solitary loss to Australia.

When it was suggested that he could afford a bigger smile, Kohli said; “It’s a classic case of understanding that this is not the end of anything. No need to get over-excited with whatever we have done.

“We are very happy with (the) number one ranking in the world, but our main challenge begins now. If we can conquer the overseas season, that’s when you will see a broader smile on my face when I sit down for the press conference.”

Kohli believes he finally has the necessary fast bowling resources for the team to rectify their reputation as poor travellers, beginning with a tour of South Africa later this year.

“Few of the guys have told me that the kind of fast bowling bunch that we have now gives us a good chance to go outside India and put in good performances,” Kohli, who missed the final Test against Australia due to a shoulder injury, said.

“I’m certainly very sure and positive about the fact that these guys can deliver away from home.

“The fitness levels have gone up and relentlessness of their bowling and the consistency have improved.”

Often accused of not taking Test cricket seriously enough, India announced a bumper home season last year and its importance was not lost on Kohli.

“It’s a very proud moment – playing good cricket all season, especially in the home season, and we dominated all of it,” Kohli said.

The 28-year-old also declared that his friendship with Australia’s cricketers was over after his team’s triumph yesterday.

Despite his struggles with the bat, Kohli has remained in the eye of a raging storm since criticising counterpart Steve Smith, who acknowledged he had a “brain fade” in the second Test.

The feisty India captain sustained a shoulder injury in the third Test in Ranchi, where he was mocked by Australian Glenn Maxwell who clutched his shoulder after diving to save a boundary just like Kohli had done before hurting himself. The bad blood spilled in the final Test too. India’s Ravindra Jadeja exchanged words with Australian wicketkeeper Matthew Wade while Smith, according to the Cricket Australia website, was seen on TV mouthing abuse after Murali Vijay did not catch Josh Hazlewood cleanly but still appealed.

Kohli, who was asked if he still remained on friendly terms with the Australian cricketers, as he had said before the series, said: “No, it has changed. I thought that was the case, but it has changed for sure.

“As I said, in the heat of the battle you want to be competitive but I’ve been proven wrong.

“The thing I said before the first Test, that has certainly changed and you won’t hear me say that ever again.”

Smith’s tone was more conciliatory as the Australia skipper apologised for his outburst after his team’s eight-wicket defeat at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium.

“I have sort of been very intense in my own little bubble, and at times I have let my emotions and actions just falter a little bit throughout this series and I apologise for that,” Smith said. – Reuters