Amit Mishra: India need to be more aggressive

Amit Mishra picked up five wickets in the first Test at Galle © AFP

India leg-spinner Amit Mishra, who returned to Test cricket after four years when he played the first Test against Sri Lanka at Galle, confessed being under pressure. Ahead of the second Test at Colombo, Mishra spoke to the media. He said, “There was pressure in coming back after four years, but I have played with most players and was confident and bowled well. I batted in Galle as I normally do, but with captain's confidence in you, you improve.” Mishra said he has been working on his pace and variation. “I have worked on my pace and variation and I hope it works out well. I feel wickets here are slow and I should work on varying my pace,” Mishra was quoted as saying by IBNLive’s Jaspreet Sahni.

Mishra reverberated India Test skipper Virat Kohli, stating that the team need to be more aggressive. “We need to be more aggressive, but the team morale is same and we will come back hard and positive. We don't want batsmen to settle by keep shuffling between spinners. We are positive about the last two Tests.”

“I, Bhaji pa [Harbhajan Singh] and [Ravichandran] Ashwin keep discussing among ourselves, also coaches, what to do and what not (sic), said Mishra. “All spinners like bounce in the wicket because that makes variations more effective.”

Speaking about Indian batsmen’s dismal performance, Mishra said, “Our batsmen are still the best against spin, but sometimes you make mistakes under pressure.”

With two more days left for the second Test, which marks the final Test of Kumar Sangakkara, Mishra said it is too early to comment about the pitch. “Difficult to say how the pitch will behave because there is still some time in the Test,” Mishra concluded.