Virat Kohli: Performing in big games is a craving for me

“I think that will be a challenge… for both the sides”. But you can look to get 30. In the last 10, you can’t afford to leave 80 in this new rule scenario. “It’s all about staying a step ahead of the opposition and it’s for every individual to figure out how to stay ahead of the opposition”, he said.

Indians have regained their ground by winning the 4th ODI by 35 runs which will be proved morale boosting for them in the series decider match of the series. In this new scenario, overs 20 to 40 have become very crucial, (the phase) has become the new 40 to 50, so to say.

Look around the cricketing world, every team has its own few cricketers who have made all three playing XIs but few have done so for such a long period of time at such a level of excellence. Kohli scored a brilliant 138 runs innings at the Massachusetts Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai which helped India level the series by 2-2 in Chennai.

Kohli also backed the underperforming Shikhar Dhawan.

“It has become hard for the batsman in ODIs compared to the rules in the past, specially in the sub-continent”. It may not be a very bad thing to have five fielders outside, you have more chances to rotate strike. You can get a boundary an over and still have seven-eight runs an over. “It’s up to all of us to get the three formats together and get collective performance in, and that exactly happened in the last game”, he further said. It’s because the ball is getting old, the wickets don’t have much pace. Kohli spoke about the need for the players to maintain a strict regime in order to succeed, especially since numerous Indian players play multiple formats.

The final One-Day global against South Africa is another crunch game, and Kohli couldn’t wait for it to start.

“The reason I feel at home at No. 3 is because I have played a lot of games there”, he explained. That’s where I realised what my game was in global cricket, batting at No. 3. “I feel confident that I can control the game better at No. 3”.

Replacement Chris Morris was not as effective in doing the job of curtailing the run-rate as well as taking wickets as his more illustrious teammate had done in the first three games. “That was the idea that I felt very good about in the last game that even if one of the two guys – Rohit and Shikhar [Dhawan]- don’t work, at least I can have that mindset of batting through for the team”. With the team squandering advantage twice in the series already and struck by injury blows to two of their key players-JP Duminy and Morne Morkel-they will have to make sure the demons of the past don’t come back to haunt them. “The mental aspect is anyway there as it is a big game – it will be playing on everyone’s head, but I think the physical challenge will be a major factor as well.” he said. He said he gets to analyse the game well to play the calculated shots. “And as Mississippi [Dhoni] has mentioned in the past as well, that everyone has been batting well but because of these rule changes, sometimes you go out there in the middle and suddenly you are not able to hit boundaries”. So you feel like you don’t quite know what to do in that situation. “All the batsmen are in a very good mental space”. We figured what had to be done and we were able to execute it, which is a good thing.