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'Weather will impact selection'

Skipper Kohli hints at inclusion of Binny in the playing eleven
Last Updated 13 November 2015, 19:41 IST

 Skipper Virat Kohli admitted the inclement weather prevailing in the City may force some changes in the team’s combination for the second Test beginning here on Saturday.

India went with six-batsman (including wicketkeeper) and five-bowler tactic in the first Test and were vindicated as their three-pronged spin attack spun a web around South Africa in a 108-run win for the home team. While they are not likely to tinker with their spin combination of R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Amit Mishra, the pace duo of Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron may make way for Ishant Sharma and medium pace all-rounder Stuart Binny.

“It does play a part, especially knowing that you might not have full game-time,” said Kohli when asked about the role of weather in team selection. “It does sort of bring about a few changes as far as the team combination is concerned. The team management and myself have spoken about it. We will make the necessary changes according to the conditions and what the weather looks like in the next few days because it is very important to keep all the factors in mind before picking a squad for a Test,” he reasoned.

Bengaluru has been a ‘second home’ to Kohli and the Delhi batsman agreed that familiarity with the conditions will help him and his team to an extent. “Knowing the conditions a little better obviously helps, but you still have to go out there and play good cricket,” he began. “You have to go out there and execute your plans. That's what will be needed here as well. A few of their players also know the conditions well, so I don't think that will make too much of a difference in this game.

“Obviously, knowing the conditions a little more than the others inside our squad will be helpful in me giving the inputs that are required to go through this Test match,” he offered.

Despite some negative press about the pitch for the first Test, Kohli said he wasn’t disappointed with the focus being more on the nature of the surface than India’s win.

“It's only disappointing if you are looking to take what is written or said to heart, or think about it too much,” he stressed. "We focus on the process and don’t really think about what's being written or what's being said.  The fact of the matter is we won a Test match and that's what we feel good about as a team. We are not worried about any external factors or what’s being discussed about things that are not in our control. If someone chooses to say or write about something which they feel is a topic of interest, that's their choice. It's up to us if we take it to heart or sit down and feel disappointed. We are not at all disappointed. We won a game of cricket. We are very happy about it,” he explained.


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(Published 13 November 2015, 19:41 IST)

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