What Virat Kohli Brings To Indian Test Team, Skipper Rohit Sharma Sums Up

Despite having an upper hand in the game, Team India failed to clinch a victory in the second Test against West Indies as the final day of the match got washed out due to rain. Asked to bat first, the Rohit Sharma-led side posted a total of 438 and then bundled out the hosts for 255. Later in the second innings, the visitors declared at 181/2 on Day four to set the West Indies an imposing target of 365 runs to win the match. Fiery half-centuries from skipper Rohit Sharma and wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan helped India to post a huge total. 

The most memorable performance in the match came from the bat of Virat Kohli, who smashed his 76th international century. At the end of Day 5, Rohit praised Virat and stated that a team needs players like him, who can stabilize an innings in Test cricket. 

"In Test matches, you need guys who stabilise the innings like what Virat (Kohli) did, he played superbly. You need the mixture of everything. We have depth, we have got variety. We are in the right place. It's about getting the job done. I always believe in getting better as a team. I said after the World Test Championship final as well. We've played consistent cricket. That's what we are looking at. We want to focus on all three aspects of the game. We need to be a good fielding unit. Bowlers - how they respond under pressure. What sort of mindset batters go in with under challenging conditions. That's what I am looking forward to," Rohit said.

The skipper also lavished praise on young batter Ishan Kishan, who brought up maiden half-century in the longest format in just 33 balls. 

"You need guys like Ishan. We wanted quick runs, we promoted him, he wasn't afraid. He was the first one to put his hand up," he added. 

The Indian cricket team was denied the opportunity to take full points from the two-match Test series against West Indies after the second game ended in a draw due to a complete washout.

India were able to get 16 points from the possible 24 which took their PCT (percentage of points won) to 66.67 percent. As a result, they are currently second in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 points table behind Pakistan who have 100 percent after winning their first Test against Sri Lanka. 

On the other hand, West Indies are currently fifth in the points table after getting 4 points for the draw which took their PCT to 16.67 percent.

Both West Indies and India will be squaring off against each other in the upcoming three-match ODI series, starting from Thursday at the Kensington Oval. 

from NDTV Sports-Latest https://ift.tt/eVo6dHG