Johannesburg: Young Indian batsman Virat Kohli on Sunday said the Indian team was ‘shocked’ that the hosts did not go for victory in the dying moments of the match, which ended in an exciting draw.
The Proteas fell short by eight runs in a pulsating Test match, finishing at 450 for seven, while chasing 458 for victory at Wanderers.
“Everyone was pretty shocked honestly, we didn’t think that they would stop going for the score because with eight runs an over and with Philander striking the ball pretty well and he can bat, we have seen that in the past,” Kohli, who was adjudged Man-of-the-Match for scoring 215 runs in two innings, said.
“I don’t know what happened. We had our plans and that was going for the wickets but to see them not going for that score was pretty surprising for all of us.
“In the end, it was a very enjoyable Test match. It was a fair finish for this Test match. The way this match has been played over the last four days, pretty competitive with both teams coming back pretty strongly in one session or the other, it was a fair finish,” Kohli added, outlining team India’s happiness at the draw achieved.
India were denied by Francois du Plessis and AB de Villiers as they shared a 205 run partnership for the fifth wicket.
Both batsmen went on to complete their respective hundreds as South Africa edged closer to the win. But their dismissal changed the match.
“It was a weird situation in today’s play from the beginning. There were a lot of ups and downs throughout the day.
“Early on we got two quick wickets in the first session and we thought that another couple of wickets in the second session would have been perfect for us but AB and Faff batted brilliantly, especially Faff not having scored runs in the first innings. To bat under pressure like that shows so much character.
“Of course AB has always been a world-class player and there is no doubt about it.” (PTI)
