COLOMBO : Indian cricket skipper Virat Kohli says his team is well-equipped to bounce back against Sri Lanka and the players are “hungry and keen to perform” in the second Test starting here tomorrow.
India suffered a shock defeat in the first Test in Galle despite dominating the series-opener for a major part.
“We definitely have it in us to bounce back. There is no point thinking about or living in the past. More often than not, if you dominate six sessions, it means that you are on top in the Test match and you should be able to win the game but that wasn’t the case,” Kohli said in the pre-match press conference.
“But the preparation has been pretty good for this particular Test match. This is a learning curve, and the guys will learn how to get over defeats and prepare for the next one. The good thing is everyone is hungry and keen to perform. The guys understood that things need to be forgotten and they were pretty professional,” he said.
Murali Vijay, nursing a hamstring injury, is expected to be fully fit for the second Test as he batted for a long while in the nets. Kohli was hopeful that the opener will make it to the playing XI.
“We will know today if he is hundred percent fit to play or not. His rehab program is going well under Patrick Farhart who is our new physio. Hopefully he is fully fit. If he wants to play and is keen then I am sure he can go through whatever discomfort he might have to go through. We will have to take that call but we are pretty certain that he is most probably going to play tomorrow,” said Kohli.
The Indian skipper also showed intent of fielding all-rounder Stuart Binny, who was added to the squad recently.
“We have got Stuart Binny because his bowling gives us balance. His batting at number six will help us too. We will look at the wicket tomorrow. But I feel that even if you don’t have five full-time bowlers, the fifth has to be one who can bowl 10-15 overs. It is very helpful in certain situations.
“Bringing in Stuart gives us the option of a third seamer. You need to make a call on the bowling attack thinking how the wicket will turn out to be during the course of the game. You just can’t get excited on the first day of play about a certain combination and then feel like maybe you should have played someone else. These things need to be looked at kept and we will keep our options open,” he added. (AGENCIES)
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