'We don't crib about pitches', Kohli makes a bold statement
Indian captain Virat Kohli seems to be miffed with the "unfair criticism" on the pitch that was used in the Day/Night Test. The debate regarding the Motera wicket emanated after the pink-ball Test got over inside two days. As India and England are set to lock horns in the fourth Test, Kohli went on to state that "Team India doesn't crib about pitches".
The shortest completed Test since 1935
The wicket at the newly-built Narendra Modi Stadium has been a bone of contention after India claimed a 10-wicket victory in mere two days. This turned out to be the shortest completed Test since 1935. A total of 30 wickets fell across two days, with both Indian and English batsmen getting deceived by straighter deliveries. However, the critics went to term the wicket "poor".
Kohli lashed out at the critics
An agitated Kohli bashed the critics on Wednesday. "The reason behind our success is that we never crib about the pitches we play on," he said. "We will continue that as a team, it is always been the case that spinning tracks come into focus way more, when teams get bundled out for 40-45 on seaming tracks, nobody talks about that."
'No body questioned the pitches in NZ', adds Kohli
A year ago, New Zealand swept India 2-0 in the two-match Test series, with both the Tests getting over before five days. Speaking on the same, Kohli said, "We lost in NZ on day three in 36 overs, I am sure nobody of our people wrote about the pitch, it was all about how India played badly and none of the pitches were criticized."
'It's always about bad batting overseas'
"It is always about bad batting then, we need to be honest to ourselves from where we are talking and what is the idea behind continuing this narrative and what serves the people by talking about this narrative," he further asserted.
Kohli rightly analyzes the scenario
To sum up, Kohli seems to be fair in his analysis. The wicket at Adelaide Oval, on which India got bundled out for their lowest Test score, doesn't differ much from the one used in Ahmedabad recently. The dynamics of pink ball made the difference on both the occasions. However, in Adelaide, Indian batsmen were targeted for "lack of application", as stated by Kohli.
India lead the four-match series 2-1
India presently lead the four-match series after winning the Day/Night encounter. The Virat Kohli-side should win or a draw the final Test in order to qualify for the ICC World Test Championship final. Meanwhile, England, who have been knocked out of the race, would want to finish the series on a high. If they manage to win, then Australia will qualify for the final.
