Virat Kohli opens up on India’s loss in the 2nd Test

For a country that has always revelled in batsmanship, India(barring Virat Kohli) put up one of the worst batting performances on show in the second Test.

With 287 to win on a pitch that did not quite have the demons that you expect from a South African pitch, you expected this strong Indian batting line up to put up a better fight.

Both innings combined, it was just Virat Kohli(and maybe Vijay and Rohit) who showed what all the talk about this Indian side being one of the best ever to tour South Africa was about.

The bowlers stepped up to the plate, bowling beautifully and sticking to their plans to bowl out South Africa in both innings, but it were the batsmen who lacked application on a track that was not spitting venom.

Kohli and the Indian Team management will have to huddle up(quickly) and sort things out before the final test, because a whitewash would put a serious blot on Virat Kohli’s(and India’s) overseas record.

Having shortly recovered from the shocks of those 4-0 losses in England and Australia, the average Indian fan wouldn’t want to be forced down that road once again.

In the post match presentation, Kohli spoke about how the batsmen let themselves down, and that being one of the biggest reasons for the series loss.

“Yeah (the wicket gave us our best chance). We thought the wicket was really flat. Quite surprising. I told the guys the wicket looks different to what it looked before toss. I thought it was our chance to put some runs on the board.” Kohli said

“Especially after SA lost wickets in the first innings, we should have capitalized. We failed to get a good partnership and take the lead. We have let ourselves down from the first game into the second. The bowlers have done the job but the batsmen have let the team down again and that’s why we stand here.” Kohli added.

Speaking about his personal achievement in the Test, Kohli said that it didn’t mean much, as the 150 came in a losing cause.

“I want to leave everything on the field, for my country, for my team. That’s the way I play. 150(sic) means nothing right now that we have lost the series. If we had won, even a 50 or a 30 would have mattered more to me. Having not won the game, personal milestones don’t matter to me. As a team, you want to win collectively. We tried but we weren’t good enough. South Africa were better than us, especially in the fielding department, and that’s why they are the winners. And they deserve to be.” Kohli concluded