Rajkot: India captain Virat Kohli said Wednesday top order batting is the only aspect left to be sorted in the Test team and enough space would be given to youngsters such as Prithvi Shaw to showcase their talent confidently.
Kohli said experimentation can only be done in the top order and has high hopes from the 18-year-old Shaw, who will make his Test debut Thursday in the opening game against the West Indies here.
“We have a change at the top of the order. We will give these guys enough space and enough chances to feel comfortable at that position. We want them to be confident of what they are doing,” Kohli said in the pre-match conference.
“The lower order is all about contribution, there is no change needed there. Rishabh (Pant) is new but Ashwin and Jadeja have performed in so many games at home they just need to replicate it abroad,” added the Indian skipper.
After series losses in South Africa and England, the Indian team management was slammed for making too many changes in the playing eleven but Kohli justified the decisions made.
“…you need your best XI on the park. In the past, most of the changes have been made in the bowling combination and people have conveniently taken otherwise. The bowlers that have sat out have never felt they have been hard done by,” said Kohli.
“The motive has always been to pick the best XI and we have hardly tinkered with the batting order barring a couple of guys who have not been in form. We have utilised the conditions to the maximum wherever we have gone,” he said referring to the bowlers’ good work in South Africa and England.
