'Only one place is up for grabs' - Virat Kohli on India's fast bowling unit for T20 World Cup

India will lock horns with two-time champions West Indies in a three-match T20I series starting at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad from December 06 and all the focus will be towards plugging whatever holes that exist and start building towards next years ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in October 2020.

Indian captain Virat Kohli spoke to the media in the pre-match press conference where he touched on a variety of issues that range from leaving the under fire wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant to visualizing the make-up of the pace bowling attack.

According to the Indian skipper, only one place is up for grabs as far as the bowling unit as far as the T20 World Cup is concerned. While Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah are already locked in, India have tried out many fringe bowlers in the last three T20I series out of which Deepak Chahar and Navdeep Saini have impressed with their performances.

‘The fight obviously is for one spot and I think more or less three guys have made a place for themselves. It’s going to be a healthy competition and it will be interesting to see how it pans out,” Kohli said.

Out of Saini, who is currently injured and Deepak Chahar, the latter has staked his claim towards nailing down that spot courtsey his slew of consistent performances which also includes world-record figures of 6/7 against Bangladesh.

It’s not that big an issue for us. I think Bhuvi (Bhuvneshwar) and (Jasprit) Bumrah are experienced bowlers. They have been very consistent in T20 cricket. Deepak (Chahar) has come in and has bowled really well,” Kohli told reporters.

Virat Kohli feels Mohammed Shami could be a real difference in Australia

Mohammed Shami is making a comeback in T20I set-up but Kohli believes if the bowler can carry his form in the shortest format, he can be really lethal on Australian pitches next year.

“(Mohammed) Shami is coming back and he is bowling really well. If he gets into a rhythm and specifically works on what’s required in T20 cricket then he will be very, very useful in places like Australia, especially with his ability to pick wickets with the new ball. He has enough pace to execute yorkers,” he added.

The Indian captain added, “Also a couple of more guys are under the scanner for sealing that spot along with three seamers. It’s a good position to be in because everyone is bowling really well,”