'Unanimous decision': Virat Kohli has 'no regrets' of naming XI in advance despite 8-wkt loss to NZ in WTC final
Virat Kohli said it was a ‘unanimous decision’ not to change the XI and it was done primarily because India did not have a seam-bowling all-rounder in their squad.
India captain Virat Kohli said he had no regrets of naming the playing XI for the World Test Championship final beforehand despite losing to New Zealand by 8 wickets at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton. India had announced their playing XI on the eve of the WTC final and decided to stick with it despite the consistent rain and overcast conditions.
Kohli said it was a ‘unanimous decision’ not to change the XI and it was done primarily because India did not have a seam-bowling all-rounder in their squad.
“No I don’t think so,” said Kohli in the post-match presentation when he was asked whether he had any regrets about the playing XI.
“You need to have a fast-bowling allrounder for that. We've been successful with this combination in different conditions. We've been successful with this combination in different conditions. We thought this was our best combination, and we had batting depth as well, and if there was more game time, the spinners would have come into the game more as well,” Kohli added.
The WTC final went into the reserve day with all three results possible but draw being the most likely one. However, Tim Southee produced an inspired performance with the ball that helped New Zealand bowl India out for 170 in the second innings.
Chasing 139 to win in the remaining 53 overs, New Zealand lost openers Tom Latham and Devon Conway to Ravichandran Ashwin but their two most experienced players Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor put on an unbroken stand to see their side home.
Kohli lauded New Zealand’s consistency and said they thoroughly deserved to be crowned as the inaugural WTC winners.
"First up, big congratulations to Kane and the whole team. They showed great consistency and heart to pull out a result in just over three days, sticking to their processes to put us under pressure. They deserved the win. The first day got washed out, and when play resumed it was difficult to get any momentum. We lost only three wickets, but we could have got more runs if play had gone on without the interruptions.
“Today, the Kiwi bowlers executed their plans to perfection and pushed us back, and we were probably 30 or 40 runs short," he said.