"MS Dhoni Said, Look Virat, You Can Chase Down This Total, You Are That Kind Of A Player" - R Sridhar Reveals Conversation During The Border Gavaskar Trophy 2014-15

Former Indian skipper Virat Kohli made his captaincy debut against Australia in the first match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2014-2015 and smashed centuries in both innings of the match. Former Indian fielding coach R Sridhar, who was a member of the support staff during the Test series, shared an interesting conversation between MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli before the final day of the Adelaide Test.

Australia declared overnight, and the visitors were given a 364 in the fourth innings to win the Test match. Skipper Virat Kohli had decided to go for the target instead of playing for a draw. He made a brilliant partnership with opener Murali Vijay, who was dismissed for 99 by Nathan Lyon, and he scored 141 off 175 balls. Lyon took wickets at regular intervals as India eventually fell short of the target by 48 runs.

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Virat’s Reply To MS Was Pithy, ‘Only If We Try, We Can Know Na? – R Sridhar

In the book ‘Coaching Beyond – My Days with the Indian Cricket Team’, Sridhar revealed that MS Dhoni tried to convince Virat Kohli to change his mind about going for the target on the final day of the game, as it would be tough for other batters to bat with more wear and tear on the pitch.

“Virat later told me that on the bus ride back to the hotel, MS Dhoni slid into the seat next to him. ‘Look, Virat, you can chase down this total. You are that kind of a player and we all know that, but as captain, you will also have to think about what the others. Are the batters capable of playing that positively and attempting to chase down 360 on the final day of a Test match? While making decisions, you will have to consider the strength of the entire team,” Sridhar wrote.

“Virat said he saw some merit in what MS had said, but he was clear in his mind that positivity was the way forward. Virat’s reply to MS was pithy, ‘Only if we try, we can know na? Whether we can do it or not. We have not chased 360 on the last day of a Test match ever before because we haven’t yet tried to do that. Let us try and give it a shot. Unless we try how will know how good we are?'” he added.

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