Bowling combo depends on conditions, says Kohli

For the first time in a very long time, the Indian cricket team boasts of an extremely strong bowling attack. They have four fine fast bowlers, two world-class spinners and a seaming all-rounder in good form with the bat.

Indian skipper Virat Kohli was thrilled to bits to have such a luxury and said he is yet to decide on the bowling composition for the opening Group B game against Pakistan on Sunday. “I think that's been on my mind in the last five-six days. Because in both the (warm-up) games all the guys have bowled beautifully and the attack looks really balanced,” said Kohli at the pre-match press conference.

“So who to choose depends on the conditions, we've just arrived so we haven't even got a chance to look at the pitch. We're going to go out to the centre. We'll have a look at the wicket. There are all kinds of possibilities -- two spinners, two fast bowlers, three fast bowlers, Hardik (Pandya) as an all-rounder and a spinner. So we'll see what the wicket is like and what we feel is going to match up well against the opposition. Accordingly, we'll pick our best bowling attack.”


Pak dangerous

Owing to the frosty political relations, India and Pakistan don't play any bilateral cricket and end up facing each other only in ICC events. Despite the lack of familiarity, Kohli said they are aware of the danger Pakistan pose. “As a team, I think, yeah, they can surprise you because, as you said, you don't play against them so much. You know of their abilities. But you're not too aware of how they react in different situations. All you can do in that situation is focus on your skill, which anyways you should do as a team. As individuals, some people like to watch videos and go through bowlers and batsmen and all that. Some people don't. I personally don't.

“If a cricket ball has been bowled, you should be good enough to handle it, whether it's bowled by someone you play regularly or you don't. You would rather take that up as a bigger challenge. We don't play them often. So they've always been a team that can surprise any team on the day that they play well. So you cannot ever take them lightly.”