Indian team manager says Virat Kohli likes to dominate

Indian team manager says Virat Kohli likes to dominate: Now, the Indian Test skipper Virat Kohli will be facing the litmus test of his career as the skipper when the Indian team takes on Sri Lanka in their den from 12^th August in a three-match Test series. It has been 22 years since the Indian team defeated the Lankan lions in Tests in their own backyard. In the recent few months, Virat Kohli has been under the pump for the downfall in his performances.

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It will be hard for many to believe that Virat Kohli, who successfully led India to Under-19 World Cup glory, was once not even a sure shot captain of the side in the lead up of the tournament. At that time there were two front-runners for the prestigious post namely Virat Kohli and Tanmay Srivastava, the Uttar Pradesh opening batsman. But, the selectors had longed ago sensed the leadership credentials of Kohli apart from his top-notch skills as a player which gave him the edge over Tanmay and eventually he not only became the skipper of the Under-19 side but also successfully led India to victory.

The Indian team manager for the Sri Lanka tour, Rakesh Parikh who was also part of the selection committee during the Under-19 World Cup recalls the time when there was a doubt whether Kohli would lead the Under-19 side or not. Now, 7 year later, Kohli is one of the leading cricketers of India. Parikh was quoted by Indian Express saying, “When he (Kohli) met me he recalled how under 19 captaincy was the first turning point in his career. And most of the boys from that team went on to play for India but it was only Kohli, who has reached great heights because of his hunger and dedication.”

Over the years, Virat Kohli has been the face of determination, dedication and ardent work ethic. Kohli has not missed a single practice session since he has started playing the game. Rakesh Parikh said, “Nobody, then, could predict that Kohli will reach such heights. With a spike cut, gel showered to his hair, Kohli seemed like any other adolescent teenager but it was his on-field traits that differentiated him from others.”

He further added that, “We choose him because we all felt that iss ladke mein match winning qualities hai (This boy has match winning qualities). He just never liked defeat and it showed in his batting too. He always liked to dominate which has not changed till date. Once during an under-19 league game, our bowlers were not able to get a breakthrough, and so he himself decided to bowl. Like a class topper, he never liked to come second.”

We have seen that Virat Kohli wears his heart on his sleeves. Kohli never shies away from on-field banter and is known for his confrontational character. Talking about Kohli’s character and the Sri Lanka tour, the 51-year old said that, “Also, if he didn’t like anything, he used to just tell it straight. Parikh believes that Kohli’s never-say-die attitude will help him succeed in this challenging series as well.