India vs England: Virat Kohli Should Strive For Consistency In Team Selection, Says Sourav Ganguly

India might have lost the first Test of the five-match Test series against England but former India skipper Sourav Ganguly is of the view that skipper Virat Kohli should not chop and change the playing XI after Edgbaston defeat. Ganguly, in his Instagram post, wrote, "One criticism for @Virat.Kohli is that he should give a consistent run to his batters & more time before dropping them. The failure against swing in English conditions can't be used as an excuse anymore as everyone knows that it's what you get when you come to England."

"You can't be excused all the time & we have lost before in 2011 & 2014. You've to bat well. It's a very well known fact that the ball will swing in England the same way as Australia is known for its pacy wickets. So if previously you've scored runs there is no reason you can't now."

India lost the series-opener by 31 runs as the Indian batsmen, except Kohli, failed to rise up to the occasion against the English attack.

Murali Vijay and Ajinkya Rahane contributed just 43 runs together in their two innings at Edgbaston.

"If you've to win a Test then everyone has to score runs," Ganguly wrote as he urged Vijay and Rahane to bat with more determination.

"This was the first Test in a 5 match series & I think this team has the capability to come back & play well. #AjinkyaRahane & #MuraliVijay will have to show some determination since they have scored runs in these conditions before," Ganguly added.

 

If you've to win a Test then everyone has to score runs. The other batsmen have to score 100's as well. #ViratKohli played very well otherwise India would have been out of the match on the 2nd day itself. This was the first Test in a 5 match series & I think this team has the capability to come back & play well. #AjinkyaRahane & #MuraliVijay will have to show some determination since they have scored runs in these conditions before. I don't think the captain is responsible for the loss. If you're the captain then you'll be criticised for a loss the same way as you're congratulated for a win. One criticism for @Virat.Kohli is that he should give a consistent run to his batters & more time before dropping them. The failure against swing in English conditions can't be used as an excuse any more as everyone knows that its what you get when you come to England. You can't be excused all the time & we have lost before in 2011 & 2014. You've to bat well. It's a very well known fact that the ball will swing in England the same way as Australia is known for its pacy wickets. So if previously you've scored runs there is no reason you can't now. The captain should give confidence to his players. It's his team & only he can change their mindset. He will have to sit with them & tell them that if he can do it so can they. He should give them time & tell them to go out & play without any fear. It is true that after continuous chopping & changing of the playing XI, players can get afraid that after all these years they've failed to garner the faith of the team management." The good thing about the great teams of the past - whether it be #Australia, #SouthAfrica or our very own team which won the Test series here in 2007 - was that the boys used to play both formats of the game - #SachinTendulkar, #RahulDravid, #VirenderSehwag, including myself. So even if you played badly in 1 or 2 matches you got a lot of time to get back into form at the international level. Playing & scoring 150 in first-class cricket can't compensate for international cricket. In this team no batsman except Virat plays all the formats. - SG

A post shared by Sourav Ganguly (@sganguly99) on Aug 4, 2018 at 8:06pm PDT

Kohli scored his maiden century on English soil and followed that with a fifty in the second innings. 

Kohli's 22nd Test century and his 200-run tally in the Edgbaston Test has vaulted him to the top of the ICC Test rankings for batsmen. 

He has dethroned Steven Smith, the former Australia captain, and is the first Indian to be No. 1 since Sachin Tendulkar in June 2011.

"The captain should give confidence to his players. It's his team & only he can change their mindset. He will have to sit with them & tell them that if he can do it so can they. He should give them time & tell them to go out & play without any fear.

"It is true that after continuous chopping & changing of the playing XI, players can get afraid that after all these years they've failed to garner the faith of the team management."

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team England Cricket Team Virat Kohli Sourav Ganguly England vs India, 2018 Cricket England vs India, 2nd Test