Indian skipper Virat Kohli addressed the pre-match press conference ahead of the first Test against England starting from February 05 on Friday. He returns to lead the side in the upcoming Test series against England, after completing his parental leave for the birth of his first child. In his absence under Ajinkya Rahane, India retained the Border-Gavaskar trophy after winning the Test series 2-1. However, Kohli said that the team’s focus is now on the England series with a place in the World Test Championship up for grabs.
Meanwhile, among the many questions, he answered, he touched upon fatherhood and how it felt to be a father recently.
Virat Kohli Opens Up On Being A Father
To me, becoming a father has been and will remain the greatest moment of my life. That is something that has to be experienced to understand what I am saying. The connection with the team doesn’t go away in any situation, especially when you have given everything for the team, especially for the Test team for the last six years on a daily basis. Being motivated to take Test cricket on top, take Indian cricket on top and the whole group has put in so much effort,” Kohli said on the pre-match presser.
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Virat Kohli further said that though he was back home for the birth of his child, he was constantly in touch with the players and following the Test series closely as well.
A happy father 😊
A proud cricketer 🙌@imVkohli reflects on the joy of becoming a father and watching #TeamIndia win the Test series in Australia. 👏👏 pic.twitter.com/h9sYQJ2kUb— BCCI (@BCCI) February 4, 2021
“You are connected invariably and I was watching all the games. In the last Test, when Shardul and Sundar were going through a partnership, I was watching it on my phone just before when we had to go in when the doctor called us,” he added.
India now under him is looking forward to playing against England in a crucial series at home. India have won their last eight Test matches at home and have been unbeaten in the last 12 series.
England play India between February 5 to March 28 for four Tests, five T20Is, and three ODIs. Chennai will host the first two Tests. The final two Tests will be played at the newly built stadium in Ahmedabad. Ahmedabad will host the T20I series followed by Pune for the ODI series.
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