MUMBAI: In terms of the occasion, the pre-departure press conference for the greatest showpiece event — the World Cup — involving India captain Virat Kohli and head coach Ravi Shastri lived up to its billing. There was a big media contingent, as expected. The conference room at BCCI’s headquarters was packed half an hour before the two arrived. The temperature inside the jam-packed room was rising — the air conditioners were switched off — but there were no unpleasant exchanges. Unlike such interactions in the past, neither Kohli nor Shastri blew their own trumpet.
They breathed confidence, but there weren’t any overconfident statements. They appeared guarded about the challenge that lies ahead — bringing home India’s third World Cup — and never once did they speak about the pressure of entering the 10-team tournament as favourites. Heck, nobody asked them about them being favourites. But while walking back, Kohli and Shastri may have smirked at how understated the event turned out to be.
In 2018, they left for tours after making bold statements and came back wounded. Perhaps they’ve learned their lessons, perhaps they haven’t. Only the 45 days from May 30 onwards will give a true picture on that front. But at least the two seemed to send out the message that this team is unfazed by the run-mountains that are being piled up in England. They shouldn’t be. They have the most balanced bowling attack, a top-three that can milk runs effortlessly, and a strong sounding board in MS Dhoni, arguably the best cricketing brain in the world.
For all the excitement that India’s bowling options bring to the table, the burden of responsibility lies on 30-year-old Kohli’s shoulders. This isn’t a one-man team by any means. But the skipper has appeared desperate in the past, and that has led to bad decisions and selections. For all the quality that Kohli the batsman exudes, Kohli the captain has also often left us scratching our heads.
But more than his batting, how he leads the side without being overpowered by emotions will determine whether the World Cup comes home after eight years. While Kohli had a decent IPL with the bat, his leadership was again the focal point. He began with six straight defeats as Royal Challengers Bangalore finished last. Those six losses, at least, may have taught Kohli a few lessons that could come handy at the World Cup.
Kohli now realises that he can’t control things that can’t. He doesn’t want to be reactive. On the field, he almost waits for things to go according to his plan. Dejection is met with responses that our censor board will bleep into oblivion. It is easy to describe that as him “wearing his passion on his sleeve”, but a world-beating captain has to be more.
On Tuesday, Kohli was asked about what he thought was his biggest lesson from this IPL. He took a long pause, perhaps each of those matches played out again in his head. “I realised that after a certain stage, things are not in your control. You have to accept that first. Then you work on things accordingly; be in the present and build every moment. The more you expect things to happen, the more frustrating it can get.
“That is what I experienced in the first half. The second half was different... We had our back up against the wall. The most important thing I learned was that even if you are in a must-win game, you can’t think a day before about what might happen. You have to arrive on that day and apply your skills to the best of your credentials. You have to accept things as they are and face them.”
Having built a side keeping in mind this World Cup, Kohli — unlike MS Dhoni in 2015 — has a well-oiled team that has been together for a while. “The only expectation we have is to play really good cricket. That’s been our focus. That’s where the results have followed in the last two to three years. We are going in feeling very balanced; very strong.
“It’s going to be challenging but the good thing is, every game has a decent gap. I don’t think players will be burnt out even if we have hectic or intense games immediately. The best thing is that we have four tough games straight up, and that will set the tone nicely for us. If you look at all top-class football clubs, they maintain their intensity for three, four months in a Premier League or in a La Liga. Why not us? If we are on a roll and maintain our consistency, then we should be able to do it for the length of the tournament.”