Kolkata: Indian skipper Virat Kohli on Saturday credited the positive mindset and self-belief of the team that helped them get back to winning ways in South Africa after they had suffered heartbreaking losses against the hosts in the opening two Tests.
“It was hard after the first two Test matches but the mindset was that we need to win at any cost. So even after two tough Test matches it is the belief that got us back when no one believed in us,” said Kohli at a book launch ceremony on Saturday.
“The coach, the management… we believed in ourselves and we were able to turn the things around. We did not worry about anything. We focused on only one thing that we are good enough and we can win, and that’s all that was required,” he further added.
Kohli’s decision to bat first in the final Test against South Africa in Johannesburg earlier this year had raised a few eyebrows but the captain said that his team was confident of winning as they did everything right in the match.
“Obviously it was difficult because we thought the wicket is going to play very differently and it’s gonna be difficult from early on. But I felt played that Test match doing all the right things and our intention was right throughout. We were not dishonest to the game, we were not scared any stage and played the right way and we knew that the game cannot do injustice to us,” he said.
“As a team we kept looking at things from the other perspective. There were opposition from all over regarding our decision to bat first but the team believed that it was the right decision for us,” he further added.
India not only went on to win the Test match by 63 runs but also won the ODI and T20I series thereafter.
The 29-year-old also stated that to be able to think out of the box is what would bring success in difficult overseas conditions.
“The mindset matters when you are going to face something difficult. At that point the team was in transition and they ended up becoming a great team overseas as well, was purely because all the payers in the team wanted to achieve the the same goal…The most important thing is you when you go to conditions that are not your own, you need to have their ability to look at things in a very different way.
“In cricket there is no one way of doing something. There is always your way and if you believe in your way then you can make things happen,” he stated further.