World Cup 2019: Not conditions, handling pressure the most important thing, says Virat Kohli

Before leaving for England, Virat Kohli, addressed media and threw light on how well-prepared, both physically and mentally, team India is for the ICC CWC 2019.

Indian skipper Virat Kohli-led India is among the top contenders for the upcoming World Cup slated to be held in England and Wales from May 30. The second ranked ODI team will begin their tournament campaign against South Africa on June 5. Before that, India will play two warm-up games against New Zealand and Bangladesh on May 25 and 28 respectively. Before leaving for England, Virat Kohli, addressed media and threw light on how well-prepared, both physically and mentally, team India is for the ICC CWC 2019. As much there is talk of batting pitches and huge totals in the World Cup, the bowlers are expected to win matches, not batters. When asked how crucial the pitches will be in deciding the outcome of the match, Virat said that it was not just about the pitch conditions, the key will be on how well the Indian squad handles the pressure. “A team needs to handle pressure and try to be as normal as possible. The condition and the pitches are nice and we expect some high scoring games.” said Virat. Virat said for him it is the most challenging World Cup of the three that he has been a part of as looking at the strength of all the teams that are taking part this year, any team has the potential to upset another team at any point in the tournament. “Focus will be to play the best cricket we can and if we live up to our standards we will probably be on the right side of the result more often and probably that is going to be the key.” said Virat. “Its not a group stage anymore, every side has to play everyone at least once and that’s a good thing for any team as now its going to be a different challenge and every team needs to adapt to it very quickly.” he added. Asked to have his say on Kuldeep Yadav’s dismal form in the IPL, Kohli backed the young wrist-spinner saying that he was glad that Kulddep ran into a bad patch during the IPL so that he could reflect on his shortcomings and come back much stronger for the World Cup. “The kind of skill Yadav possesses along with Chahal make them the two strong pillars that hold the team together. “, said Kohli. "We were not worries about anyone’s headspace as everyone was confident and had a good IPL." he added. Asked on how the cash-rich tournament Indian Premier League (IPL) helped the bowlers prepare for the mega 50-over tournament, Virat said IPL turned out to be a good platform for them to prepare for the World Cup. “If you saw the guys bowling, no one looked tired or fatigued after bowling four overs, their ultimate mindset was to remain fit for the 50-overs tournament and not unnecessarily let their fitness come down and that itself was communicated right before the start of the IPL. “