India will look to play against the youngest members of its team during the Australian tour, said its captain, Virat Kohli, on the eve of the first ODI. India will play three ODI, three T20I and four Tests in a tour that runs until January 19. Also included in that schedule are two three-day warm-up games, the first of which overlaps with the T20Is. Kohli said that management had “discussed such things.”
“We are looking to give younger players opportunities. There are a lot of young people on the team who are really looking forward to getting into the park and playing in a place like Australia,” Kohli said. “It’s a great opportunity for them to realize something new about their own games and how they can take their games to the next level and build that level of confidence and continue to help the team in the future.
“So from that point of view, yeah, it’s a very important series for them as individuals to grow and for us as a management group and the captain to give them that opportunity to go out there and play the best they can and play freely and enjoy their cricket. We are definitely looking forward to seeing these guys on the field and how they are shaping up because they are such a talented bunch of guys. “
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Indian teams across all formats are made up of players who are either on their first tour with the team (T Natarajan, for example, and Mohammed Siraj on his first test tour) or are close to entering the first team, Shubman Gill. and Navdeep Saini are two of them. As such, it is a considerable contingent that Kohli suggested will be used liberally during India’s time in Australia.
Another factor driving that decision is workload management, especially for his two main bowlers, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami, who both had full IPL seasons and will likely take more responsibility in the absence of Ishant Sharma.
“It’s a no-brainer [managing Bumrah and Shami’s workloads]”Kohli said.” They have also been through a full IPL season. They have both bowled beautifully, with great rhythm. It will be very important to control the workload and therefore the point that some of the younger guys have a chance also comes into play.
“We want to see how people react in different situations because you are faced with a different situation every time you come on tour in India. You have to manage the workload, you have to wait for young people to act in the field. A good balance that he needs to maintain, something that we have been able to do well in the last few years and that is why our bowlers have been fit and available for the big games, most of the time, for us. “
The Indian team came out of their mandatory 14-day quarantine on Thursday and is believed to have been training since November 14. This reality imposed by the pandemic helped with the team’s preparation, Kohli said, adding that taking time to get used to a touring country was an underrated factor. However, like his deputy KL Rahul, he stressed that the team is focused on building momentum in the ODIs that can carry the test series.
“I don’t think there is any more desperation or need to think along those lines for us as a team,” he said. “Because we have to understand that the last time we were successful here, it was for a reason. We were focusing on our process and we were really very strong in our minds to be able to win tough situations and be at our best.” in those difficult situations and that does not change.
“Australia is going to try to attack us with all our might and we look forward to that, and we are ready for that. We are ready for some tough on-field cricket and something to look forward to as a team. But I don’t think we’re giving any incentive to motivate ourselves just because it’s a opportunity to set the tone before the test series. Every series is different. The importance of starting well is simply because you come to foreign conditions and you want to be confident as a team very quickly so that you can take it to other formats. And that’s something that we look forward to it. “
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