Indian skipper Virat Kohli is unfazed before the do-or-die game against South Africa, as before going into the next game, he said the team is taking this encounter as just another normal one and not getting overexcited by the fact that a loss here can rule them out of the tournament,
“You need to have a good balance of being competitive and being passionate about the game, but at the same time, not getting overexcited. The team that treats the game as normal as possible is the team that’s in a better position to get the right result,” Virat Kohli said a day ahead of the game against South Africa.
“A lot of times, teams come in and they want to do something special and end up messing up the game in important situations. The team that can have most composure, I would say, to sum it up, will have a better chance of winning the game tomorrow. That’s what I’ve experienced in the past. You tend to get overexcited, and then you commit errors that can cost the team important runs, or you fail to grab all the chances because you’re overexcited and that can cost the team as well. I think composure will be the biggest word for tomorrow,” he added.
Kohli-led team India will be against none other than AB de Villiers-led side, a player with whom he has been sharing Royal Challengers Bangalore dressing room for seven years now. Both the players know each other well and of course know their strengths and weakness. On being asked about De Villiers, Kohli said,
“I know AB quite well, so I know the reason behind his mindset of playing like that. Yeah, but at the same time, when in the right frame of mind, it doesn’t matter what he’s done in the past games or how many runs he has scored or not scored. If he decides to play the way he can, you know you have to find a way to get him out pretty quickly.”
Both the teams are craving for a win here, as a loss will mean that one of the team will fly back to their respective country. Indian team though looks favourites going into the game due to the choking habit of the South African team, what we have seen in past oodles of times.
Meanwhile, Proteas have received a big boost, as their skipper AB de Villiers has passed the fitness test and is cleared to participate in the crucial game against the defending champions on Sunday.
India and South Africa take on each other on June 11 at The Oval in the eventual quarter-final at the KIA Oval in London.