Brisbane: India will continue to play the aggressive brand of cricket, skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni declared today as the team aims to erase the 1-0 deficit when the second cricket Test begins here Wednesday.
Led by stand-in-skipper Virat Kohli, India made a bold attempt to chase a huge 364-run target in the fourth innings but fell short by 48 runs.
“The aggressive approach was the right approach. We went for the target which I felt was very important,” Dhoni, who is returning to the side after recovering from a hand injury, said on the eve of the second Test.
“Thanks to the partnership between Virat Kohli and Murali Vijay, we were in a position to chase down the number of runs that were given to us. Unfortunately we lost some quick wickets when Vijay got out. It was very difficult for us to come back and draw the game from there. The only approach would have been to win the game from there. It was fantastic.
“The approach will remain the same. A lot depends on the platform you get, what kind of partnerships your batsmen, both openers and the middle order, have provided. Accordingly, you see the number of runs you can put. You exploit what really is there for you. A lot depends on the momentum and how the game is going and then you decide what needs to be done,” he added.
Dhoni returns to the playing eleven at the Gabba, where none of the current squad members have ever played Test cricket. The Indian captain said rest was very important for him.
“I had suffered the injury during the England series. I felt that the injury might get settled while I am playing. But when I played the Champions League and ODIs after coming back home, I saw it was getting worse with time. It was an important call at that time because this series is very important and after this we have the World Cup. So I need 20-25 days off and the rest was very good for me,” he said.
Dhoni lauded young Kohli for his leadership skills, which he says are different from his style.
“He has been fantastic not only as a batsman but also as a leader. Even in the ODIs he led against Sri Lanka at home, he was fantastic. He is an aggressive character and slightly different to what I am but at the end of the day you don't want all individuals to captain the same way,” Dhoni said.
