India vs Australia: Virat Kohli Says India Were The Better Team, Deserved To Win

The Indian cricket team registered a famous win against Australia on the fifth and final day of the opening Test at the Adelaide Oval on Monday. Going into Adelaide Test, India had four bowlers in the playing eleven. The visitors' bowling unit lived up to the expectations and managed to take 20 wickets in the opening Test of the four-match series. The Indian bowlers showed patience on the final day against a gritty Australian tail but kept pegging away at wickets to inch closer to a memorable victory. "Super proud (of the bowlers), to have four bowlers and take 20 wickets is a great achievement. Something that we haven't done in the past," said Kohli in the post-match presentation.

"Collectively we were the better team and deserved to win," Kohli further said.

Cheteshwar Pujara, who played the role of an anchor for India in both innings, was adjudged player of the match and Kohli heaped praises on the right-hander.

"Cheteshwar Pujara was the difference between India and Australia. Priceless from Pujara, we were down and out at lunch on day 1. His grit and determination brought us back in it. We always knew that runs on the board would make the home side tentative. Any lead was gold and we got 15. In the second innings again, he and Rahane batted well," Kohli further added.

India corrected their mistakes from the first innings and batted brilliantly in their second innings, building partnerships.

"We focused only on partnerships in the second innings and the openers performed well. Shows us that if the batsmen step up regularly, we will be gunning for a win in every Test match," Kohli further said.

Talking about the close finish of the Test match, Kohli said, "These things happen in Tests, ups and downs through a game. You need to just stay calm. Odds were stacked against them. They fought really well but we executed our plans well and got that last wicket which we were intending to get."

"We could have added another 30-35 runs which could have taken the game totally beyond Australia's reach," the Indian captain further added.

Having a 1-0 lead in the four-match Test series, India will face the hosts in the second match at Perth, starting December 14.

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team Australia Cricket Team Virat Kohli Cheteshwar Pujara Ajinkya Rahane Tim Paine Australia vs India 2018/19 Cricket