As the Indian national cricket team heads off to compete in its next text series, the team believes that a combination of scheduling and acclimation will help them perform at their highest level.
India will begin their tour of Europe when they play to Twenty20 matches, starting June 27th. First up for the top-ranked team in tests will be Ireland, and then they’ll subsequently take on England in three ODIs, followed by a five-test series.
In a recent news conference, India team captain Virat Kohli has openly stated that he and his Indian teammates “are looking forward to playing difficult cricket,” believe that playing against such high-end competition will be the best way the Indian team can improve itself.
Kohli also recognized that the team has to buck its recent trend of not playing well when they leave the friendly confines of India, so their current stay in Ireland represents an exciting opportunity for the team.
2014 was the last time India travelled to England for a tour under MS Doni, and that trip resulted in a 3-1 loss in a test series. Clearly, Kohli and crew are looking to average that loss. The captain mention that the last time they played in England, the team felt that they did not perform as consistently they would have liked, and just didn’t seem up to the task as they’d usually be.
Virat Kohli
Kohli hopes that the increased comfort enjoyed by getting acclimated in their new surroundings will result in less pressure on the batsmen, or bowlers not feeling compelled to do more than necessary.
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Kohli’s confidence was also evident in regards to the team’s upcoming match against England, and it had more to do than the acclimation with the new climate and surroundings. He mentioned that with the team’s wrist spinners, he believes the Indians have the edge over England. He referred to two of the team’s bowlers — Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav — as “X-factors” who are able to create flat wickets into wicket-taking wickets with the variety of attacking they have.
Kohli commented now this strategy was highly effective for the team in their 5-1 ODI series win in South Africa, with Chahal and Yadav tallying 33 wickets between the two of them.
However, the Indian team is well aware that England is not to be taken lightly, given their recent successes. They’re only one victory away from a 5-0 OD trouncing of Australia, where they tabulated a few record-breaking batting totals. Those totals included an enormous 6-481 at Trent Bridge earlier this week, followed by chasing a highly respectable 310 with 32 balls to spare at Chester-le-Street late last week.
For India, all eyes have been on Kohli, as he’s battled injuries and missed time previously as a result. However, Kohli declared himself as “100% ready to go,” saying that his neck is healthy, and after going through a battery of fitness tests, he’ll be there to anchor the Indian batting lineup and lead them to different results on this trip.