Indian captain Virat Kohli spoke to media before the big match against Pakistan. Kohli, in his trademark style, answered all the questions very candidly. When asked about India’s playing XI for their first match of ICC Champions Trophy 2017 against arch-rivals Pakistan, Kohli said that this topic has been on his mind for the past five-six days.
He said that all the players performed well in warmup matches and it is very tough for him to choose the playing XI. However, he said that India’s young all-rounder Hardik Pandya will be a sure shot pick and he will come into the side as at the all-rounder.
“The playing eleven has been on my mind for the past five-six days, the most out of anything else. In both the (warm-up) games, all the bowlers have performed brilliantly and it’s really tough for me to choose the playing XI. You have all tough games in a tournament like this. You can’t pick and choose in a tournament like this. In general, cricketers don’t pick and choose. With Hardik(Pandya) coming into the equation as the all-rounder of the side, you can only play four bowlers playing alongside him.”
When asked about the pitch and how it is going to behave, Kohli said that he hasn’t had the chance to look at the pitch yet. But again, he said that irrespective of the pitch, Hardik will feature in the playing XI.
“I haven’t had a chance to look at the pitch yet. Once I walk out to look at the centre tomorrow, will get a chance to look at the wicket. There are all kinds of possibilities. We may play two spinners and two seamers with Hardik or we might choose to go with him and three seamers,” he added.
