There is a process to everything Virat Kohli does. He is intense while training, methodical while batting, and focused while pacing an innings. Combine them all and he becomes a batting machine. But then, Kohli has not scored a century in the World Cup and he has not gone past the triple-digit score in his last 10 ODI innings. This is an aberration, a point of discussion for the rest of the world, but for the skipper, he is at peace.
"It's been a different kind of role I have played in this World Cup," Kohli told reporters at Old Trafford.
"Personal milestones do not matter'
"It's great that Rohit has been scoring so consistently, which means that coming in the later half of the innings, you have to play a different role, which is controlling the middle overs and letting guys like Hardik (Pandya), Kedar (Jadhav), MS (Dhoni) and Rishabh (Pant) express themselves," he further added.
The skipper said that he is very comfortable settling into this role where he holds one end up which allows the other stroke-makers to come in and attack the bowling and rattle along at a strike rate of 150.
He has often said in the past that personal milestones do not mean anything for either him or the team and that the interest of the side takes precedence over anything else.
"Rohit said the same thing the other day, that he's trying to do the best for the team. In that process, special things happen. I'm very happy for him and hope he gets two more (centuries) so we can win two more games," said Kohli.
He once again beamed when he said that he believes Rohit is the best ODI player in the world currently.
Kohli also said that his side prides themselves on flexibility and this approach has helped them a lot in the recent past. Well, they have dropped just one match out of the eight matches played in the group stage. Hence, the skipper said that if the situation does arise, he would never hesitate in dropping himself from the preferred number three position if it benefitted the side.
"If the situation presents itself where the opening partnership is outstanding and someone needs to go at No 3 and strike the ball, I am absolutely open to doing that. To win a tournament like this you need to be very flexible and think on your feet and I think we have done that well so far and hopefully we can do the same thing in two more games," the skipper added.
