Mohali, March 3 : India skipper Rohit Sharma on Thursday heaped praises on Virat Kohli, saying he has been exceedingly well in the longest format of the game. The 33-year-old Kohli is set to play his 100th Test match, when India take on Sri Lanka in the first game at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium here on March 4. “It’s been an absolutely brilliant journey for him and a long one. He has been exceedingly well especially in this format and changed so many things. And yup, it’s one hell of a ride for him and will continue to be for the years to come,” said Rohit at the virtual press conference on the eve of the match. Recalling his special memory with Kohli, Rohit said, “The series we won in 2018 in Australia was a special memory. And the best memory as a better was Virat Kohli’s Test hundred in South Africa in 2013. It was a challenging pitch and to face Chris Morris, Dale Steyn, etc was one of the best knock that I remember.” When asked about experienced campaigners Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara’s Test future, the skipper said, “Pujara and Rahane are big shoes to fill in. Even I don’t know yet who will be coming in. You can’t put their years of hardwork, contribution into words. All those overseas wins, India becoming No.1, they’ve played a big part. We’ll have an eye on them.” Along with Kohli, the Mohali Test will be a special occasion for Rohit as he will be leading India for the first time in the red-ball game. “My philosophy of captaincy will remain the same in Tests too. Stay in the present, analyse the situation and then react. Don’t want to think too far ahead. We all know it is a different format. No comparison with ODIs,” Rohit signed off.
With UNI inputs
