Virat Kohli: Expect changes with World Cup 2019 in mind
India captain Virat Kohli with wicketkeeper MS Dhoni in Dambulla yesterday.
His eyes firmly trained on the 2019 World Cup, skipper Virat Kohli yesterday told the Indian cricket fraternity to expect "a lot of changes" in the coming days as the team starts drawing a roadmap for the mega event.
Kohli spoke after India humiliated Sri Lanka by nine wickets in the first ODI of the five-match series here. "I think we need to start planning for the 2019 World Cup. You have to prepare 24 months in advance. We are taking that as a challenge and look to try out different things," Kohli said.
The captain added, "We're going to experiment and embrace that. You can see a lot of changes. All the guys have bought into it. It's all about what gives us more balance."
Kohli's comments come at an interesting time, when questions are being raised about the future of old warhorses Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh.
Kohli remained unbeaten on 82, while opener Shikar Dhawan slammed a fine century, as India recorded their biggest win in terms of overs left in a 200-plus chase.
"The last three months have been a great time for Shikhar. The good thing is that he is capitalising on his purple patch. He can win you games with the way he bats and we would be looking to keep him in that zone for as long as we can," Kohli said of his teammate.
Asked about the move to play Axar Patel in place Kuldeep Yadav, he said, "We thought Axar was a gun fielder and felt that one wrist spinner is enough. Also, Axar is a useful batsman and that helps us. It's the start of the series and it's about getting the batting right."
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