India have been brilliant of late under the leadership of Virat Kohli in the longer format of the game. Kohli, after taking over the captaincy role from MS Dhoni in the Test arena, has defeated teams like South Africa and New Zealand at home, and Sri Lanka and West Indies away.
India have been a strong team at home for the last few decades, but their performances abroad have not been satisfactory. Though India might have registered victories in Sri Lanka and West Indies under Kohli, their real test will lie in conditions that offer pace and bounce like that of England, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand.
Former India cricketer Ajit Wadekar believes Kohli can inspire his team to victories in foreign soil as well. He feels the need to play much more practice matches when they are on a tour to prepare for the series.
"I am surprised that we haven't done much to improve our overseas performance.I am in favour of playing to your home advantage. So, India should make turning tracks, but during off periods, it is important that the players train on fast and bouncy pitches," rediff.com quoted Wadekar as saying.
"Also, when we tour countries, it is important we reach there early and play practice games to get acclimatised to the conditions. I feel Kohli's proactive captaincy can play a crucial role in winning Tests abroad."
With Kohli being successful in the Test format, there have been calls from several quarters, suggesting the Delhi batsman to be handed captaincy in the ODI format as well. With the all-important World Cup coming up in the next three years, Wadekar believes that the selectors must have a plan for it.
"The next World Cup is in 2019. Three years is a long time and we can't predict what will happen. The selectors must be having a plan. I feel Dhoni is still very handy in limited overs cricket and we can use his experience. The final decision can be made next year based on whether Dhoni wants to play the next World Cup or is in the scheme of things to play in 2019," Wadekar said.
