It was a pleasant surprise for the Indian Cricket Team fans who saw Virat Kohli bowl and then dismiss Netherlands skipper Scott Edwards. India’s bowling coach Paras Mhambrey revealed that it was a setup that he and Rohit Sharma had planned to use Virat Kohli as the bowler. Following Kohli, Rohit Sharma too bowled and scaled a wicket as India etched a comfortable victory against Netherlands in the last group stage game of the World Cup.
“It was a nice set up. It was lovely to see Virat’s wicket. I could see him adjusting the fine leg a little bit, looked at KL (Rahul) saying where he is going to bowl. It was a lovely set up,” Mhambrey told BCCI.TV in an interview.
“I had a chat with Rohit on how could we use Virat. With the new ball, he swings the ball and gives us that little bit in the powerplay. The bigger challenge with Virat was the middle phase, which he has done in this game. He ticked that box as well.
New Bowling role for Virat Kohli?
“Now we are going to push him for the death, let’s see when that happens, but I am sure he does have that really nipping, sharp yorkers for the right-handed batters. I think we will see little bit of that as well,” said Mhambrey.
Will Rohit Sharma take the risk of allowing Virat Kohli to bowl against New Zealand? That remains the main question. India has lost the likes of Hardik Pandya who served the purpose of a 6th bowler and the 4th pacer in the team. But with the all-rounder being injured, India had the liberty to opt for a change when Kohli bowled against Netherlands.
Scott Edwards Dismissal
In a bid to introduce some bowling change, Rohit Sharma gave the duty to Virat Kohli to roll his arms. Prior to the start of the game and in the practice sessions, Kohli however took an active part in bowling in the nets.
With the Dutch top order back in the pavilion, Rohit had some fun and games on his mind. While Jasprit Bumrah carried the charge from one end, the Indian skipper introduced a flurry of slow attacks from the other end.
Kohli came to bowl his first over he gave away 7 runs. But he got another chance as the Chinnaswamy crowd urged the Indian skipper to bring back Kohli into the attack. And Kohli produced a good over where he managed to scalp a crucial wicket of Dutch skipper Scott Edwards.
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