“There Could be Few Surprises,” Says Virat on Team Changes vs Aus

‘You will not see such a bad performance again, I will assure you that,’ said Kohli.

A 333-run defeat in the series opener and Indian skipper Virat Kohli found himself assuring the media that his team will never repeat the kind of "bad performance" and "lack of intent" that led to the humiliating opening Test loss to Australia in Pune.

The Indians were hammered by 333 runs in the first Test inside three days in a stunning defeat, which ended their 19-match unbeaten streak.

Ahead of the second Test starting here tomorrow, Kohli said the hosts have learnt their lessons from the debacle.

You will not see such a bad performance again, I will assure you that. It is important to accept defeats. We lost the Pune match because of lack of intent. Australia played better cricket. It is important to accept defeat, if you go by your ego or ignore it, it will affect you only. It doesn’t mean losing in Pune would result in us losing the other matches also.

Virat Kohli

Kohli said it was a rare collective failure for the Indians.

Sometimes such defeats are necessary. This gave us a platform to understand where we lacked. It happens very rarely that the whole team does not perform, this is what happened in the last match. We learnt a lot from that loss.

Virat Kohli

Kohli refused to divulge what changes are likely to be made in the playing XI though he promised "surprises".

We have a combination in mind and we will finalise it when we sit together this evening. There are all kinds of possibilities tomorrow there could be few surprises.

Virat Kohli

However, Kohli did confirm that all-rounder Hardik Pandya was not yet fit to be considered for selection.

Hardik Pandya is not available for selection. He has a niggle in his shoulder. Rest of them are fit and available.

Virat Kohli

The swashbuckling batsman, who endured a rare failure with the bat in Pune, said he expects the familiarity with the pitch to work in favour of India here.

I have played a lot of games here. I don’t think the Bangalore wicket has changed over the years. No surprises at all. Whenever we have played Test cricket we have done well.We take all these things into account.

Virat Kohli

Off-spinner Jayant Yadav drew criticism for his below par performance in the first Test where he took just two wickets. But Kohli refused to say whether he would be dropped.

"These are perceptions. We have our ideas that we will address as management and go with best combination possible. Jayant has been outstanding. You can't put pressure on the guy who has played only one series. The way he has grabbed his spot, it has been outstanding. He is an intelligent cricketer," he asserted.