Virat Kohli has branded India’s heavy defeat to New Zealand at the T20 World Cup as ‘bizarre’ and felt the side played with too much caution, though he is still optimistic they can progress to the semi-finals.
India posted a first innings score of just 110-7 and astonishingly faced 71 deliveries without hitting a boundary as New Zealand dominated with the ball.
That score was well below par at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium and the Kiwis knocked off the runs needed with eight wickets and 33 balls remaining to leave India’s hopes of progressing from the Super 12s in serious jeopardy.
India have now lost their opening two games and sit fifth in the table, behind even Namibia, and no longer have their fate in their own hands, with Kohli at a loss to explain why they performed so badly.
Asked what he made of the performance, Kohli said afterwards: ‘Quite bizarre. I thought we were, to be very honest and very brutal up front, I don’t think we were brave enough with the bat or ball.
‘With the ball obviously we didn’t have much to play with, but we were just not brave enough with our body language when we entered the field and New Zealand had better intensity, better body language, and they created pressure on us from the first over onwards really and continued that through the innings.
‘And every time we felt like we wanted to take a chance, we lost a wicket. That happens in T20 cricket, but that’s most often a result of that little bit of hesitation with the bat, when you feel like: should you got for the shot or not?’
Kohli remained upbeat on India’s chances of progressing, continuing: ‘There’s only one way to play in T20 cricket, you have to be optimistic, you have to be positive, you have to take calculated risks, and that’s what this format is all about.
‘Just because you’re the Indian cricket team and there’s expectations doesn’t mean you start playing the format differently. So I think they have to disconnect from that a little bit and just back ourselves out there and take pride in performing for the team.
‘As long as individuals are looking to do that, I think we’ll be fine. There’s a lot of cricket to play in this tournament and something we must all look forward to and certainly the team must look forward to and go out with a positive frame of mind.’
Asked whether playing for India brings added pressure, Kohli added: ‘Well look when you play for the Indian cricket team you obviously have a lot of expectations, everyone knows that – not only from the fans, but from the players themselves.
‘Wherever we play we are watched, people come to the stadiums to support us, so there is always going to be more with our games. That’s always been the case and we’ve embraced it over the years and everyone who plays for the Indian team has to embrace that as well and learn how to cope with it.
‘And when you cope with that as a team, you’re able to overcome that pressure and those tough situations, and we haven’t in these two games and that’s why we haven’t won.’
MORE : ‘Class above’ – Michael Vaughan says England and Pakistan are early favourites to win T20 World Cup
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