IND vs WI: Happy With My Intent - Virat Kohli Striving To Find Balance Between Intent And Recklessness

Indian batter Virat Kohli expressed happiness that he was able to play aggressively and put the pressure on the West Indies bowlers but also insisted that he’s constantly working hard to find the balance between recklessness and playing with intent.

Kohli smashed a 41-ball 52 in the second T20I. He looked fluent in the powerplay but had to slow down after India lost a couple of wickets in quick succession. The rebuilding process began between him and Rishabh Pant before Kohli was dismissed. Nevertheless, he was happy with his knock.

“I had decided to stay positive but then we lost a few (Rohit, Suryakumar) wickets. I still wanted to keep going but unfortunately, I got out. I was happy with my intent that I wanted to play my shots. Sometimes when you play with responsibility over a period of time, you tend to ask (yourself) if you want to play the big shots early,” Kohli told Star Sports.

Kohli’s knock consisted of seven fours and a six and it brought back the olden days of running with intent and working the field. He looked well set to accelerate before Roston Chase, the best bowler on the night once again, bowled a beautiful delivery to castle Kohli.

“Special mention for Rishabh and Venky’s performance in the end” – Virat Kohli

Youngsters Pant and Venkatesh Iyer proved to be more than handy with the bat. They put on a 76-run association for the fifth wicket that propelled India’s target from somewhere around 150-160 to 186. It proved to be 8 runs too many for the Windies as they ended up on 178/3.

“You don’t want to be reckless but at the same time, you want to play your shots. That is the balance you strive for. Today, I was happy with that balance. The wicket was gripping in the middle so if we are smart with the ball, we have got enough. Special mention for Rishabh and Venky’s performance in the end. They have got us those extra 10 runs,” Kohli added.

Rovman Powell and Nicholas Pooran had a stunning 100-run partnership for the third wicket with both reaching their fifties. Unfortunately for them, it wasn’t enough as India’s death bowling proved to be excellent in the end.

Also Read- IND vs WI: It Was Very Important Innings From Virat Kohli, He Took The Pressure Off Me – Rohit Sharma After 8-Run Win In 2nd T20I