'Great team effort' - Virat Kohli pleased with his side’s all-round performance against South Africa

India vs South Africa Test series which is going on in India right now is turning out to be a one-sided affair with the home team dominating both the Test matches so far in a three-match series. In the recently concluded Test match in Pune, India crushed the touring side by an innings and 137 runs which is by far their biggest win by margin against the Proteas.

India has taken an unassailable lead in the three-match series winning both the Tests so far but they are not going to take the third Test lightly as the International Cricket Council’s World Test Championship is at stake. According to the Indian skipper, each and every match is equally important for his side if they want to stamp an early authority in the World Test Championship points table.

Virat Kohli is more than happy at the moment, courtesy his side’s ruthless run in the home season for the last half-decade or so. This is India’s eleventh consecutive Test series victory in their backyard breaking the previous record held by the mighty Australians, twice (10 on both occasions). This was also South Africa’s sixth straight loss in the away Tests. Kohli’s 30 Test match wins in the first 50 matches as a skipper also stands third on the all-time list just behind Australian greats Steve Waugh (37) and Ricky Ponting (35).

Virat Kohli loves the team spirit

In the post-match press conference talking about the rise of Indian Test cricket in the past few years, Kohli said, “The good thing is when we started, we were at number 7. The only way was up. We laid down a few things and are all lucky to have this group of players. In the last 3-4 years, it’s amazing to see that hunger for all the guys to keep improving. It’s been nice and looking at the larger picture – the Test Championship, every game has even more value. We are not going to take the foot off the gas in the third Test. We are looking for a result and hopefully make it 3-0. No-one’s going to relax at any stage that is a guarantee.”

The match was very important to the Indian captain as far as his individual records are concerned as he scored his personal best score in Tests remaining unbeaten on 254 while batting in the first innings. But for Virat, as we all know, team comes first, it is his highest priority no matter what the situation is. Virat Kohli even took to his Twitter handle to appreciate his side’s brilliant efforts on the field. He wrote, “Great team effort and spirit shown by the boys. #INDvSA”

~ Written by Chinmay Jathar