Indian batter Virat Kohli has revealed how he made his 2018 England tour successful. He revealed that when he came to bat he started having flashes of the 2014 Test series because 35,000 people were at the stadium. started booing.
“There were about 35,000 people at the stadium and they all started booing the moment I entered the field,” says Virat Kohli on his 2018 England tour
Virat Kohli after having a horrendous tour of England in 2014 showcased his class and set the stage on fire when India toured England in 2018. Even though the visitors were at the receiving end of the 4-1 drubbing, the Indian skipper was the standout performer for his team.
During his first tour to England in 2014, which he calls the worst phase of his career, Virat Kohli scored just 135 runs at an average of 13.40 in five Tests and many thought that he would be the end of his career. But after that, he wrote a story of his own and never looked back.
When in 2018 India toured England for the Test series, Kohli set the stage on fire and gave a befitting reply to all the critics as he was at his exceptional best. He started the tour with a staggering knock of 149 runs in Edgbaston and then followed it up with a sensational show in all the games.
Virat Kohli said – "Before the England tour 2018 I'm feeling little bit jittery and nervous, I spoke to Ab De Villiers and he telling me He said 'This is not 2014 and you're not the same player so you'll be absolutely fine & then I became very calm after that".
— CricketMAN2 (@ImTanujSingh) February 25, 2023
Advertisement
The former India skipper won the battle against his arch-nemesis James Anderson and smashed him all over the park. Kohli scored 593 runs from 10 innings at an average of 59.30 and made sure that he overshadow the horrendous tour of 2014.
Speaking on the RCB podcast, Kohli revealed that he got the flashes of the 2014 tour when he went to bat in Edgbaston. He elaborated. “My heart was pumping because all I could think of was the flashes of 2014. I walked in and there were about 35,000 people at the stadium and they all started booing the moment I entered the field. My heart started beating faster. They have this amazing ability to create an environment where you feel like I have got no chance here.”
“Much weight was lifted from my shoulder,” Virat Kohli on his 149-run knock in Edgbaston
Kohli also went to explain what he went through during his knock of 149 runs in Edgbaston. He added:
“I remember James Anderson was the guy running with the ball, and I was like, what are the odds here I am facing the first ball from him again after four years. In my mind, I was like ‘please just play the first ball and he bowled it at the fourth stump and I left that ball’. I became calm after that first ball and then I got dropped at 22. I could have got out on 22 in that innings but I got 149 and I didn’t look back from there, so that’s when you realised that you just can’t sit there and crib about things that didn’t go right. There are a lot of things that went right. So much wait was lifted from my shoulder.” He concluded.
