Kohli has to accept that India blew it

THE ICC now know the only World Cup format that is truly acceptable to India. The one which guarantees their safe passage to the final. No matter how many games they play, no matter whether they win or lose. After defeat by New Zealand, Virat Kohli (right) bemoaned that ‘45 minutes of bad cricket’ should result in their exit from the tournament. He said that winning the league segment should ensure a nation gets a second go, if they lose a semi-final. Not content with an overblown preliminary round purely designed to give India and its broadcasters nine matches, he then wished to remove the knockout aspect of the knockout stage. It is amazing that such a supreme athlete and competitor should stand in denial of what the best of his, indeed any, sport represents. Excellence. Always. So, of course, 45 minutes of bad cricket can prove fatal; 45 minutes of bad anything does for you in elite competition. A bad half of football, three bad holes on the back nine of a major, a bad set of Centre Court tennis. India were five for three against New Zealand and were struggling from that point. Tough. That’s the game. And just because there are a lot of folk watching back home, it doesn’t require change. India’s top order blew it. They were at fault, not the format. ANDY MURRAY tweeted the amalgam ‘Serandy’; Serena Williams said she preferred ‘Murena’. And no one proposed ‘Andy Williams’? For heaven’s sake, who was in charge of word play at this tournament? We might come up short at tennis, but we could always do puns. FRANK LAMPARD says he already knows what he will do with N’Golo Kante, but won’t reveal any secrets. ‘Kante is one of the greatest midfield players in the world,’ Lampard said. ‘My job is to find the best position to get the best out of him.’ Holding central midfield it is, then. And Jorginho takes his chances. NoThING that was said to Johanna Konta in the press conference after her Wimbledon exit was either patronising or harsh, as she claimed. Potential champions shouldn’t expect gentle treatment in the arena, or the press room. If they do, that tag is unlikely to be lost.