By CricketCountry Staff
Virat Kohli on Saturday wished good luck to the Indian Under 19 cricket team for their World Cup final tie against Australia scheduled on August 26, saying that they must feel relaxed and believe in themselves.
Published: Aug 25, 2012, 05:49 PM (IST)
Edited: Aug 25, 2012, 05:49 PM (IST)
Virat Kohli led India to win in the 2008 edition of the tournament in Malaysia © Getty Images
By CricketCountry Staff
Hyderabad: Aug 25, 2012
Virat Kohli on Saturday wished good luck to the Indian Under 19 cricket team for their World Cup final tie against Australia scheduled on August 26, saying that they must feel relaxed and believe in themselves.
Kohli said, “I would just like to say, well done, firstly to Unmukt and all the boys. You guys are doing a great job there and keep just one thing in mind, be as relaxed as possible.”
“I know it’s not easy. We messed up in our finals as well, batting first. But we were able to come back and defend a low total. It’s all about believing in yourself; keep believing,” he added.
The right-handed Indian batsman said, “You are playing Australia in Australia; but there is nothing better than beating them in their home ground. And probably it’s going to be the most special match of your life. [So] just go out there and express yourself and believe in yourself.”
Kohli, who led India to win in the 2008 edition of the tournament in Malaysia, praised Indian skipper Unmukt Chand for the efforts.
“I have seen him playing for Delhi as well. He is a really talented player and [is] really aggressive naturally. All the guys in the team are really talented and they are playing some good cricket out there,” he said.
“I have seen them bat and I have seen them bowl and they have enormous amount of talent. It’s a platform that’s perfectly set for them to deliver and do something special for the team,” Kohli was quoted as saying by bcci.tv
The 23-year-old recalled that winning such a big tournament at a young age gave him a lot of confidence.
“At that point of time, it was the most exciting thing that happened to us. At the age of 18 or 19, to win a World Cup is always a special feeling because you are representing your country, be it a lower level. But yes, it was as special for us as winning the senior World Cup at a later stage,” he said.
The Indian star conceded that such junctions in a cricketer’s career turns boys into men.
“If they can cross that last hurdle and put in a great performance and just do things right and do something special on the day, it is going to make them really, really confident and it is going to probably change them a lot as far as their cricketing careers are concerned,” he concluded.
India U 19 team will clash with Australia in the final on Sunday.
Superb bowling performances saw them defeat Pakistan in quarters and New Zeland in the semis but the side has failed to get consistent efforts from their batsmen, with Vijay Zol (150 runs) being India’s highest run-scorer.
They have been much better with the ball though, with Kamal Passi (10 wickets) and Sandeep Sharma (8 wickets) leading their attack.
The spin duo of Harmeet Singh and Baba Aparajith also proved their worth with economical spells in the nine-run win over New Zealand in the last-four stage.
