After dominating' home season, Virat Kohli sets sights on overseas success
Mumbai: The 13-Test long home season for India has come to an end, with India registering series victories against all of the visiting teams including New Zealand, England, Bangladesh and Australia. India won 10 out of 13 Tests they played this home season and skipper Virat Kohli could not be any more proud.
“We have been playing good cricket all season and especially in the home season we dominated all of it. It is a very proud moment,” Kohli told bcci.tv.
“It was very important for a young side to build a team for the future. For that we had to put up consistent performances which we did in this whole season. It was important how we responded to difficult situations. The credit goes to all of them especially the support staff, whose role is not highlighted. This is a team effort, rather this is a squad effort because it involves everyone.”
The home season ended with an exciting Test at Dharamsala, where the hosts beat Australia by eight wickets to clinch the four-match series 2-1. The Delhi lad, who missed the final Test due to a shoulder injury, was pleased to see his teammates stepping up at the time of need.
“It was difficult watching from the outside when you have been in the thick of things all the time for past so many years and seasons. But the most pleasing thing is when you see guys taking the responsibility in your absence and actually going out there to play one of the best ever Test matches that as a viewer you can see.
"I would call myself a viewer out there. I really enjoyed it. It was not easy to not play this game, but at the end of the day sitting here and having won the series, I have no complaints.”
The skipper is not ready to rest on the laurels of the home season and highlighted that the biggest challenge in front of Team India is to win overseas.
“It is 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 number 1 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. To understand where we are placed and the kind of cricket we have played, and where we stand as individuals at the end of season, it makes me very happy as a captain.
"If you want to win more Test games, you have to have complete team performances. It’s the main reason why we are sitting here as the No. 1 team in the world and we are quite a fair distance above the other teams. That makes me very proud as a captain and all the guys in the change room are very happy with what they have been able to achieve and ending the season on a high.”
