India’s captain Virat Kohli said on Wednesday that the decision to be present during the birth of his first child was “absolutely clear” in his mind and that he does not want to miss the special moment “at all costs”. Kohli will perform alone in the opening test against Australia and then return home after being granted paternity leave by the Cricket Control Board in India (BCCI). “It is a decision that was absolutely clear in my mind. As committed as you are to playing for your country, this is a very, very special moment in life and something you want to be there for at any cost,” Kohli said. Steve Smith from Australia in a video posted by BCCI.
In his absence, Ajinkya Rahane will lead India against the number one team in the World Test Championship standings. Kohli said he’s excited to see how Rahane gets the job done and wants the latter to step up and enjoy the opportunity. Kohli also said that he is excited about how Hanuma Vihari plays against Australia.
“I’m quite excited about how Ajinks is doing. I think he’s someone who will enjoy the responsibility of captaining while I’m away. I think it’s his time to step up and I think he’ll enjoy the opportunity. I’m a Hanuma Vihari boy. he’s really looking forward to seeing the bat here. I think he’s a pretty solid player, “Kohli said.
During the candid conversation with the Australian batsman, Kohli also revealed when he decided to take cricket as a career.
“I always knew that I wanted to play the game at the highest level. The moment I really thought I was definitely going to make a career out of this was when my father passed away. That was the moment I realized I had to get Ser serious about this and really giving the right compromise and my focus can’t change. From there, I became unique to just focus on just playing for India and playing for a long time, “he said.
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During last year’s 50+ World Cup, Kohli won hearts on social media after gesturing to the Indian crowd to stop booing Steve Smith.
Reflecting on the same, Kohli said, “You came back after a long time, having gone through everything you had to do. I feel like nothing in life can be that permanent and I felt that it is not fair to target an individual, personally. Because for Much that we face, there is a human side to things too … Yes, you are competitive on the field but you don’t want to be disgusting as such. That is one of the things that I realized. In the long run, you realize account of the importance of things from a broader perspective. So, I felt that it was not right to do it at that time. “
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