WATCH: Virat Kohli discloses why Vijay Shankar bowled the last over

Virat Kohli discloses why Vijay Shankar bowled: The Indian captain opened up on choosing between Shankar and Jadhav.

Speaking during the post-match presentation after winning the second ODI against Australia at Nagpur last night, India captain Virat Kohli hailed the presence of wicket-keeper batsman Mahendra Singh Dhoni in such tense situations.

Having registered his 40th ODI century earlier in the day, Kohli was declared the ‘Man of the Match’. Speaking during his short stint on Chahal TV after the match, Kohli highlighted how him playing a long innings was important for the team.

“It was a tough day today. It was very hot in the afternoon. As you said, the wicket was very dry and slow. It became really slow after the 25th over. It was important for me to play a long innings. Anything over 250 would have been challenging for the opposition,” Kohli was quoted as saying.

If there was one match who shared the limelight alongside Kohli post the match, it was all-rounder Vijay Shankar. Other than scoring an awe-inspiring 46 (41) with the help of five fours and a six, Shankar bowled the all-important last over.

With 11 runs to defend, Shankar dismissed Australia all-rounder Marcus Stoinis and leg-spinner Adam Zampa within three balls to bundle out the opposition. Apart from sharing the limelight, the 28-year old India all-rounder also shared space with Kohli at Chahal TV.

“I want to congratulate Vijay today”

Lauding Shankar’s all-round efforts, Kohli revealed that Shankar’s flow while batting had made his job easier. Kohli, who led India to their 500th ODI win, ended up congratulating Shankar for his performance and appreciated his character in both the innings.

“When Vijay and I were playing, we shared a good partnership. He batted really well. He was in the flow. He made my job easier. I though we could post 275 but he was run-out in an unfortunate manner. I had to again reassess the total.

“It was a challenging day. I’ve been there on the field for nearly 100 overs. A bit tired now. But I feel happy when we win. I want to congratulate Vijay for it requires mental strength for the way he batted and bowled the last over. He showed his character today,” Kohli said.

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“I was hoping for Vijay to get the ball to reverse swing”

During the business end of the match, Kohli faced a major conundrum in giving the last over of the match to either one out of Shankar or Kedar Jadhav. Being asked about what made him hand the bowl to someone who had bowled only one over over someone who had bowled eight economical overs in the match, Kohli laid emphasis on reverse-swing.

“I didn’t give the bowl to Kedar Jadhav because stepping out and hitting a six to a spinner is comparatively easier. It was reverse-swinging for the fast bowler. I was hoping for Vijay’s deliveries to reverse and beat the batsmen. It happened on the first and the last ball of his over.

“Exploiting the reverse swing was a reason to hand the ball to Shankar. Moreover, he had 11 runs to defend. In such cases, the batsmen had to hit a big shot. With Australia losing another wicket, we would have been in the match,” Kohli added.

Primarily a Hindi-language show, Chahal TV had created more pressure on Shankar than the the last over. “Yahan Hindi bolne mein thoda pressure hai (I feel more pressure while speaking in Hindi over here)” Shankar responded while laughing before talking about the match.

“I was ready for the last over”

Because exceptions are always there, India leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal conversed with Shankar in English. Being asked about his preparation before bowling the last over, Shankar said that he was preparing himself from the 43rd over.

“I was actually ready for it. I was preparing myself after the 43rd over. I thought that I’m going to bowl the last over and defend 10 runs. It was there in mind. I thinking of what to do and trying to execute that,” Shankar mentioned.

In the six ODIs that he has played, Shankar has batted for a couple of times. While he scored 45 against New Zealand at Hamilton, he scored 46 yesterday. Co-incidentally, both the times he walked back to the pavilion after getting run-out.

When Chahal funnily suggested him to not run in the 40s, Shankar seemed to have agreed to his suggestion. “This is the second time I am getting run-out after getting 40 [46]. Can’t do much. I’ll try to get to 50 as quickly as possible next time,” he replied hilariously.

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