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Zulqarnain Haider confirmed that he had received threats from unidentified people following his team’s one-wicket win in the fourth ODI against South Africa and was told to get in line for the fifth match

Osman Samiuddin09-Nov-2010In his first public comments since fleeing from Dubai and arriving in London on Monday, Pakistan wicketkeeper Zulqarnain Haider has confirmed that he received threats from unidentified people following his team’s one-wicket win in the fourth ODI against South Africa and was told to get in line for the fifth match. As a result of the threats Haider – who is seeking some sort of protection in the UK – has announced his retirement from cricket.”The way my situation is right now I am retiring from international cricket,” Haider (24) said. “There is too much pressure on me, I have received threats, my family has received threats.”The issue of threats brings the matter within the ICC’s purview, and its chief executive Haroon Lorgat said the governing body was in regular contact with the PCB. “Clearly this is in the first instance a team matter for Pakistan cricket but the ICC is willing to provide assistance to the PCB and the player,” said Lorgat. “We understand his plight if reports are indeed true, but we can only help if he is willing to engage with us.”Lorgat did concede, though, that Haider erred in not informing the ACSU. “I think we have to build the confidence amongst the players that the right thing to do is to speak to the ACSU officials if they have got anything that they want to declare,” he told ESPNcricinfo. “I don’t think it was wise of him to have done what he did, because it doesn’t solve the problems for him as well and the right thing would have been to speak to the ACSU.”Haider outlined his encounter with the person who approached him, without giving too much detail. “When I went out of the hotel to eat dinner once, he came up. He was alone but I felt there were two to three people behind him. I can describe him. He spoke Urdu but I cannot describe the accent accurately. He said you will make lots of money if you join us and help us. If not, then staying in the team could be difficult and we can make things difficult for you. I don’t know why I was approached and others weren’t.”Speaking to Geo, a leading Pakistani news channel, Haider was guarded about events of the previous 24 hours but seemed to indicate that he had sought some kind of “protection” from British authorities. He is thought to have been detained at Heathrow by immigration authorities for nearly four hours, before he moved to an undisclosed location.”The fourth ODI, the things I was told to do I didn’t, and the fifth ODI, what they wanted done I didn’t do,” Haider said. “That is why I did what seemed right to me and I came here. I can’t tell what kind of threats I received to the country because my family is still in Pakistan.”When asked further about the nature of these threats and who they might have come from, Haider was unwilling and unable to reveal much more. “I am not accusing anyone of being a match-fixer. I only got one guy telling me that if you can’t do this or that, there will be problems, or fix the fourth of fifth ODI. I don’t want to say who it is, neither do I know so much about who it is. I have only played two-three ODIs.” Asked specifically if he thought players within the team were involved, he said, “I am not saying they are or are not. Only God knows that. But I did what I thought was better for everyone. I just didn’t want to sell my country, my mother. The country is like your mother and if you sell that you are nothing.”Haider also confirmed that he took his passport from the team management on the pretext of buying a SIM card for his mobile and left on Monday morning. Questions have been raised by a number of former players and board officials themselves about why he didn’t approach the board first to report the threats, as is required by the anti-corruption code of conduct. “I felt if I told them, it would get worse for me and my family so I thought to come here. I know about British rules as I have been coming here for the last nine to ten years. They protect you.”If I had told the PCB or players, it would’ve gotten out and then who knows? I don’t feel it would’ve been better to tell anyone or authorities there. If I had told any of the other players, it might have put them in trouble also.”Though he didn’t confirm that he had sought asylum in the UK, he did strongly indicate that he was seeking some form of protective status. “I cannot say where I am. I am not in a detention centre. Immigration authorities helped me a lot. The British government is such that if you are on the right path, they will protect you. They have rules [as far as asylum is concerned] and you can’t enter until you have given reasons why. Immigration asked me what I would do. According to the rules they said go like this but hire a government lawyer. I don’t have money right now to hire a private one but if this is the cost of walking on the right path, then so be it, I will bear it.”As the interview went on, Haider became emotional, ending it with a plea that his family – currently in Lahore – be helped and protected. “Help my family somehow. If it can be done, send my family here. For their security. I have my daily wages from the South Africa series and that is it. I will communicate with someone to see if they can help me financially.”Haider has not yet contacted the Pakistan High Commission in London. “We are not involved. Not to my knowledge. He [Haider] has not approached us as yet,” an official at the High Commission said. When asked if the Pakistan board had approached them, he did not confirm or deny, saying that the “PCB should be handling it.”Pakistan’s sports minister Ijaz Hussain Jakhrani, however, said the country’s government didn’t support Haider’s actions. “The government will not support any move from Zulqarnain to get asylum in the UK. We don’t support his actions and believe he should have come to us if he was under threat from anyone,” Jakhrani said. “He didn’t have confidence in the national team management or board (PCB). We don’t want to interfere in the internal matters of the board but we certainly want to know why this has happened as it affects the image of the country.”ESPNcricinfo understands the PCB discussed various options of dealing with the matter, including contacting the high commission in the UK and asking them to offer Haider protection. This suggestion, however, was overruled. Haider’s family in Lahore said he has not been in touch with them since his arrival in the UK.

A summary of the second round of matches in New Zealand’s domestic one-day competition

Cricinfo staff17-Dec-2009Wellington have moved to the top of the points table after a comfortable six-wicket win over Central Districts at Basin Reserve. Left-arm fast bowler Andy McKay bagged four wickets, and was backed up by the rest of the bowling attack, as Wellington restricted Central Districts to 217. The score could have been much worse had it not been for Brendon Diamanti’s 68 at No.9 but his effort was in vain. Wellington faced little difficulty in scaling down the target, as James Franklin stroked an unbeaten 84 with support from Chris Nevin and Steven Rhodes to seal victory with almost six overs to spare.Powered by a strong middle-order performance, Auckland eased to a comfortable 37-run victory against Otago at Colin Maiden Park. After electing to bat, the home team lost the wickets of Richard Jones and Anaru Kitchen cheaply. Reece Young and Ravi Bopara then steadied the ship before Young was dismissed for 40. Gareth Hopkins took over the reins with a free-scoring 70, and in combination with Bopara who made 89, set Auckland on course for a sizeable score. Otago’s innings began in similar fashion with two early wickets preceding a repair job, this time through Shaun Haig and Craig Cumming. Haig top scored with 81 but the rest of middle order could not sustain the effort. Auckland’s bowlers shared the spoils as Otago were bowled out in the 48th over.Canterbury recorded their first win of the competition, overcoming Northern Districts by 42 runs at Seddon Park. Shanan Stewart smashed six fours and six sixes in his 80-ball 97 to take Canterbury to a formidable 296 for 7. Canterbury were boosted by contributions of 85 from Rob Nicol and a quickfire 46 from Kruger van Wyk. In response, ND looked good to trump Canterbury after openers BJ Watling (63) and Michael Parlane (80) added 143 for the opening wicket. But a middle-order slide and a five-wicket haul from Corey Anderson marked Canterbury’s comeback and took them to victory despite a belated lower-order recovery.

McMullen and Leask’s contributions weren’t enough for Scotland to chase down 199

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Jun-2025Opener Michael Levitt’s breezy 90 helped Netherlands beat Scotland by 17 runs in a high-scoring contest in the T20I tri-series in Glasgow on Wednesday. His 57-ball innings lifted Netherlands to 198 for 7 after they were asked to bat. In reply, Scotland managed only 181 for 9 on the back of Brandon McMullen’s half-century and Michael Leask’s quickfire 46.Netherlands lost Max O’Dowd and Teja Nidamanuru inside the powerplay but it was the 75-run third-wicket partnership off 45 balls between Levitt and Scott Edwards that steered Netherlands to a competitive total. While Levitt, who had scored a T20I century before, smashed six fours and five sixes in his knock, Edwards chipped in with a 21-ball 31. Fast bowler Charlie Cassell broke the threatening stand, trapping Edwards lbw in the 13th over. Three overs late, Levitt was dismissed by fast bowler Jasper Davidson. There were also handy lower-order contributions from Ryan Klein and Roelof van der Merwe that ensured Netherlands had enough on the board.For Scotland, Cassell and Davidson shared four wickets among them.In the chase, Scotland stumbled early, when opener Mark Watt was run out in the third over for a 9-ball 6. However, No.3 McMullen and George Munsey revived Scotland briefly with their 50-run stand for the third wicket. Offspinner Nidamanuru gave the breakthrough by ending Musney’s stay in the eighth over and dismissed captain Richie Berrington in his next over. McMullen too fell after a 27-ball 51 leaving Scotland in trouble.While No. 6 Leask stood up with his 46 off 23 – where he struck five sixes and one four – Scotland kept losing wickets regularly on the other end. From 151 for 5, Scotland lost the next four wickets for 30 runs to eventually finish at 181 for 9. Netherlands’ left-arm spinner Van der Merwe, though leaked 44 runs in his four overs, accounted for two wickets in the 17th and 19th over to halt Scotland. Nidamanuru finished with 3 for 30 from his four overs while Aryan Dutt and Daniel Doram also scalped a wicket each.With this victory, Netherlands have moved to top of the points table with four points from three matches. They will face Nepal on Thursday Scotland are second with two points from three matches.

All three part of a 14-man squad for the first Test against Pakistan in Perth with Boland and Morris with Lyon replacing Murphy as the only change from the last Ashes Test

Alex Malcolm02-Dec-20231:44

Malcom: Lance Morris will bring the x-factor

David Warner is on track to get the Test farewell he desires while Mitchell Marsh and Cameron Green have both been named in Australia’s 14-man Test squad alongside Western Australia speedster Lance Morris for the first Test against Pakistan.Australia’s selectors pulled no surprises naming 10 of the 11 that played in the last Ashes Test back in July, with Nathan Lyon replacing Todd Murphy after recovering from his calf injury. Green has been selected as the extra batter/allrounder and two extra fast bowlers in Morris and Scott Boland have also been named in the squad for the first Test against Pakistan at Perth Stadium starting on December 14.As was expected, Alex Carey has retained his place as the first-choice Test wicketkeeper despite losing his ODI place to Josh Inglis at the start of the World Cup. But the selectors still see him as the clear-cut Test wicketkeeper and he tuned up for the series with a classy 81 for South Australia in their tight loss to Victoria last week.Related

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Morris is the only player who was not part of the Ashes squad having been rested over the winter after concerns over his back and his workload coming back from the tour of India. His addition to the squad was long expected though as Cricket Australia’s medical team has carefully managed his domestic summer so far in conjunction with the WA selectors.He has played just two Marsh Cup matches and three of the six Sheffield Shield games, with no back-to-back fixtures. He was rested from WA’s last Shield game against Queensland and instead played club cricket for Scarborough in Perth where his overs were carefully managed across two weekends. He is being groomed as Mitchell Starc’s understudy as the strike weapon in Australia’s Test attack. Morris’ careful management was designed to have him fit for the start of the Test summer as the fitness of Starc was set to be an unknown coming out of the long World Cup campaign. Starc suffered lingering groin soreness after the Ashes series, where he was named Australia’s player of the series, but he managed to play 10 of Australia’s 11 World Cup matches.Warner had long forecast the series against Pakistan, and specifically the third Test in Sydney as his desired farewell from Test cricket. His Test form over the last two years, even with a lone double century against South Africa last year, has raised questions as to whether he deserved to go out on his own terms. But Australia’s selectors believe he is one of the best two openers in the country and has been named for the first Test, having made a half-century in his last Test innings at the Oval and come off a stunning World Cup in India.Marcus Harris, Matt Renshaw and Cameron Bancroft are the three main candidates to replace Warner either before Sydney or for the two-Test series against West Indies in mid-January. The selectors opted not to promote any of them ahead of time. All three will instead play for the Prime Minister’s XI against Pakistan in Canberra starting on Wednesday.Chairman of selectors George Bailey suggested there was scope for any players performing in that game to be added to the Test squad at any stage.”As ever, there will be opportunities in the short to medium term to break into this squad and we look forward to seeing the continued strong performances from players who have been performing domestically, many of whom will get a tremendous opportunity in the PM’s XI fixture against Pakistan later this week,” Bailey said.Green is the only player in the 14-man Test squad who will also play for the PM’s XI. He is coming off 96 for WA against Queensland in his first red-ball innings since he was dropped for the final Test of the Ashes series. Australia’s coach Andrew McDonald suggested last week that there was a way Green and incumbent allrounder Marsh could play in the same side later in the summer if they were to shuffle the batting order post-Warner’s exit but it seems likely that Green will have to bide his time.Australia’s first Test squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Lance Morris, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner

Rana, Deepti and Gayakwad shared seven wickets between them as Thailand were skittled for 37

Sruthi Ravindranath10-Oct-2022India strolled to a nine-wicket win against Thailand in the Women’s T20 Asia Cup after spinners Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana and Rajeshwari Gayakwad shared seven wickets between them. Thailand were restricted to 37, their third-lowest total in the Asia Cup, which table-toppers India then chased down in six overs, losing just one wicket.Thailand started off cautiously, moving to just 16 for 1 at the end of the powerplay. The collapse began with Naruemol Chaiwai’s run-out in the seventh over following which Thailand lost their last eight wickets for just 17 runs.Thailand openers cautious
Smriti Mandhana, playing her 100th T20I, once again stood in for Harmanpreet Kaur – who was out of the last game with a niggle – and opted to bowl keeping the damp conditions in mind.Thailand openers Nannapat Koncharoenkai and Natthakan Chantham started off watchfully as Deepti straightaway found sharp turn, and took just one run off the first over. Koncharoenkai broke the pressure with a drive to the boundary off quick Meghna Singh, who was swapped for Renuka Singh for this match, and in the following over Chantham brought out the sweep and got a boundary against Deepti, showing positive intent.But a couple of balls later, Chantham was deceived by the turn and was bowled.The collapse begins
Koncharoenkai and Chaiwai continued their cautious approach, not taking any risks, and that resulted in Thailand playing out 27 dot balls in the powerplay. With Thailand having lost the prolific Chantham early, the onus was on captain Chaiwai to push them to a respectable total. But a quick throw from Meghna fielding at point resulted in her getting run-out for three in the seventh over.Rana struck the very next ball, sending Chanida Sutthiruang back for a duck with a delivery that turned in sharply from outside off stump. From there on, wickets fell regularly. Koncharoenkai’s carelessness resulted in her being run-out, and Gayakwad and Rana ripped through the middle order to leave Thailand reeling at 28 for 8 by the end of the 12th over.Nattaya Boochatham and Thipatcha Putthawong managed to stay at the crease for 17 balls but Deepti returned to break the ninth-wicket stand. Meghna accounted for the last wicket to fall in the 16th over.An easy win for semi-final bound India
It was a straightforward chase for India. Following a quiet first over – India scored just three runs – from Boochatham, Sabbhineni Meghana and Shafali Verma managed to hit a boundary each in the next couple of overs. Following Shafali’s departure in the third over, Pooja Vastrakar joined Meghana at the crease and steered India to 22 for 1 in five overs. They finished the match in the sixth over, hitting four fours – two each – off Putthawong to guide India to a resounding win.

Spinner’s fifty and four-for helps seal victory as Warwickshire stay in hunt for top-two spot

ECB Reporters' Network30-May-2021Warwickshire blew Group One of the LV= Insurance County Championship wide open after beating Nottinghamshire by 170 runs in a pulsating contest at Edgbaston. Set a victory target of 309 in 74 overs, the visitors were bowled out for 138 with eight overs to spare as spinner Danny Briggs followed up his important runs in the match with a decisive spell of 24.3-14-36-4.After the Bears took their overnight 201 for 6 to 264 all out, with Briggs scoring a round 50 and Michael Burgess 80, they bowled with collective skill to close out a thrilling victory. At 89 for 5, Nottinghamshire had no choice but to abandon their quest for a fourth successive victory and their hopes of defending out for a draw were scuppered as the Bears maintained the pressure with disciplined bowling supported by excellent fielding.Related

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“It was a great game on a good pitch and a good contest between bat and ball for four days which is what you want,” Briggs said. “Then for us to come out on top at the end is just great.”It was pleasing for me to have an opportunity for a long bowl on the final day and really embrace it and push the game home with the support of the other bowlers. We bowled and caught really well and I think the calmness we showed the whole way through was probably what enabled us to win.”In the morning, Burgess and Briggs took their partnership to 103 in 33 overs before the former top-edged a sweep at Liam Patterson-White to slip. Craig Miles was soon run out by Ben Slater’s direct hit, before Luke Fletcher rattled the stumps of Briggs and Liam Norwell.Norwell soon struck with the ball as Haseeb Hameed edged to wicketkeeper Burgess and two big wickets fell in successive overs when Ben Duckett swept Briggs to Rob Yates at deep square and Ben Slater nicked Tim Bresnan behind. A brilliant leg-side stumping by Burgess off seamer Olly Hannon-Dalby dismiss the dangerous Joe Clarke and when Steven Mullaney pulled Hannon-Dalby to deep square, Notts were five down and in trouble.”We feel absolutely gutted,” Notts head coach, Peter Moores, said. “They bowled well but I think, in some ways, we caused our own demise a little bit, but we have got to dust ourselves down and come back strong against Essex next week.”It was a tight game all the way through. Probably the key time was the third day when they played really well but we managed to stay in the game. Then we cleaned them out this morning to leave all three results possible but I think we got a bit distracted by looking for the win a little bit when we first started batting and made some mistakes.”Lyndon James and Tom Moores ate up valuable time in a stand of 16 overs, but when both fell in quick succession, Moores leaving a straight one from Will Rhodes and James edging Briggs behind, the visitors were vulnerable again. Briggs winkled out Zak Chappell, caught at silly point, for post-tea figures of 10-10-0-2, and Patterson-White’s 72 minutes of defiance ended rather unluckily when a defensive shot off Miles dropped the ball back on to the stumps.That left Nos. 10 and 11 with 11 overs to survive – and they managed just three before Fletcher was bowled an absolute pearler from Biggs to the delight of a boisterous crowd in the Birmingham sunshine, giving the spinner his best figures since joining Warwickshire over the winter.”Having the fans back in the ground was amazing,” Briggs said. “There was a great at atmosphere. It was my first experience of having the crowd behind me at Edgbaston and I loved it. They got behind us when we needed it and it was great to see the excitement in the stands.”

Seamer only bowled six balls in training on Wednesday due to sore elbow

George Dobell in Cape Town01-Jan-20200:37

Archer becomes injury doubt for second Test

Jofra Archer has emerged as an injury doubt for England’s second Test in South Africa.Archer, who took six wickets in the first Test, only bowled six balls in England’s training session on January 1 due to a sore elbow, raising concerns that he will not have recovered in time to play in the Cape Town Test.ALSO READ: England ‘will not be afraid’ to leave out Broad or Anderson – SilverwoodThe pitch for the Test, which starts on January 3, lacks the grass seen in Centurion and is relatively dry. As a result, England are likely to bring a spin bowler into their side. Dom Bess, the Somerset offspinner, looks in pole position to play, ahead of Jack Leach – who trained on Wednesday, but has been unwell for most of the past month – and Matt Parkinson.Jofra Archer is a fitness doubt for the second Test•Getty Images

That means that one seamer would have to miss out, with Archer’s injury suggesting he could be the most likely to do so. If he is fully recovered and fit to play – which is far from certain – the selection dilemma facing Joe Root and Chris Silverwood would probably come down to a choice between James Anderson and Stuart Broad.While Archer was expensive in the second innings at Centurion, it will be a significant blow for England if he is unavailable. He is, alongside Mark Wood, the fastest bowler in their squad and their seam attack would risk looking somewhat one-paced in his absence. The pitch is expected to prove relatively good for batting. Not only it is the first Test surface prepared by new groundsman, Ihtishaam Adams, but the local board’s finances suggest they would prefer a four or even five-day crowd.All 19 members of England’s touring party were fit enough to train, with Dom Sibley recovering quickly from the illness that has swept the camp since their arrival in South Africa.

The Bangladesh opener, who is recovering from a wrist fracture, hurt himself again during training and might not be available for the first Test against West Indies

Mohammad Isam13-Nov-2018Opener Tamim Iqbal’s return to the Bangladesh side is likely to be delayed further, after he had picked up a side strain during training on Tuesday. Tamim, who had fractured his wrist in the Asia Cup, had hoped to return to action for the first Test against West Indies, which begins on November 22 in Chittagong, but chief selector Minhajul Abedin has now said that he is in doubt.”We are still awaiting a doctor’s report on Tamim to know the extent of his injury but it now seems difficult [for him to be available for the first Test],” Minhajul told ESPNcricinfo.Tamim had returned to batting against the cricket ball in the nets earlier this week, after undergoing rehabilitation for the wrist injury. Tamim injured himself while batting during the Asia Cup opener in September.He then left to London for check-up before returning to Dhaka for rehabilitation. The Bangladesh selectors will also assess Shakib Al Hasan’s recovery from a long-standing finger injury, before naming the squad for the opening Test against West Indies.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Niall O’Brien and offspinning allrounder Paul Stirling, though, returned from injuries

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Aug-2017Seamers Barry McCarthy, who has fractured his right thumb, and Craig Young, who is nursing an elbow injury, were ruled out of Ireland’s one-off ODI against West Indies on September 13 in Belfast. Wicketkeeper-batsman Niall O’Brien and offspinning allrounder Paul Stirling, though, returned from injuries. Left-arm spinner George Dockrell, who had missed Ireland’s Intercontinental Cup match against Netherlands, also made a comeback.

Ireland’s squad for West Indies ODI

William Porterfield (capt), John Anderson, Andrew Balbirnie, Peter Chase, George Dockrell, Ed Joyce, Jacob Mulder, Tim Murtagh, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, Boyd Rankin, Simi Singh , Paul Stirling, Gary Wilson (wk)
In (from squad for tri-series): John Anderson, Jacob Mulder, Boyd Rankin
Out: Barry McCarthy, Stuart Thompson, Craig Young

In the absence of McCarthy and Young, Peter Chase, Tim Murtagh, Kevin O’Brien, Boyd Rankin are the seam options in the 14-member squad. Rankin appears set for his first ODI since June 2016. A back injury had kept Rankin out for most of Ireland’s matches this year. He had played the Intercontinental Cup match against Netherlands earlier this month.Ireland’s spin department is well stacked with no less than six options, including legspinner Jacob Mulder, whose last ODI appearance came against Afghanistan in March this year. Mulder, too, was part of the Intercontinental Cup team, along with batsman John Anderson, who has not played an international for Ireland since September 2016.”It’s disappointing that both Barry and Craig are ruled out but we have other options in the seam-bowling department,” Ireland coach John Bracewell said.”On the plus side we have Paul Stirling and Niall O’Brien back from injury and that will certainly bolster the batting. George Dockrell has been in prolific form in domestic cricket and he is recalled too, which means we have no fewer than six spinning options in the squad.”Bracewell was wary of West Indies, who bounced back from a heavy innings defeat in the first Test to stun England in the second, with Shai Hope’s twin hundreds playing a big role. The return of Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels also lends more depth to the side.”The West Indies showed incredible character to bounce back after losing the opening Test heavily against England, and showed just how dangerous and talented a side they truly are,” Bracewell said. “They will have double-centurion Shai Hope in their ranks for the Belfast clash, and when you add Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels into the mix then it’s a very dangerous group of players. “Ireland have recent history on their side, having chased down 305 against West Indies, during the previous clash between the two sides, in the 2015 World Cup in Nelson.Ireland squad: William Porterfield (capt), John Anderson, Andrew Balbirnie, Peter Chase, George Dockrell, Ed Joyce, Jacob Mulder, Tim Murtagh, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, Boyd Rankin, Simi Singh , Paul Stirling, Gary Wilson (wk).

Anil Kumble has backed Virat Kohli’s aggressive approach, noting that he had been no different as a player, and adding that he would not curb anyone’s natural instincts

Shashank Kishore in Bangalore04-Jul-2016Anil Kumble, India’s new head coach, has said he will back Virat Kohli’s aggression and desire to push boundaries to secure wins. He also said India would approach tough situations positively during the long season, which starts with a four-Test series in the West Indies.”I love his aggression. I was no different,” Kumble said at the team’s pre-departure press conference in Bangalore. “I was also aggressive, but very different in terms of how I probably came across on the field. I’ll be the last person to curb someone’s natural instincts, but of course we all know how important it is to be ambassadors of India and be a part of the Indian cricket team. That everybody in the team understands. There is a fine line and we will ensure that everybody knows that. I certainly won’t curb anyone’s instincts.”Kohli, a picture of composure, wore a sheepish smile as talk of his “over aggression” did the rounds, but insisted that India’s mindset change wasn’t one-off, and that it was something they planned when he took over the reins of the Test team in January 2015.”Our first intention is to win – that won’t change,” he said. “Yes, there have been situations from where we’ve lost, but we know we were in that position because of the positive brand of cricket that we played.” The reference, clearly not lost on anyone, was the Adelaide Test in December 2014, which India lost trying to chase down 364 on the final day.”We need to realise we got there in the first place because we played at 80%, so the focus is on the remaining 20%. Anil ‘s mindset was the same during his playing days, so the mindset makes a difference. If you are hesitant, you don’t explore a different side to your ability as a team. Our motive is the same. We will play with the same mindset of trying to win the series and not just being satisfied with solitary Test wins.”As a follow-up, Kohli was asked about Test rankings, which he said were merely a byproduct of consistent cricket, and not the team’s primary aim. “High standards have different definitions,” he said. “The main goal is to play good cricket. Even if we’re No. 1 and someone else does better, there’s a chance they can overtake you. So that’s not our aim. The season is long, and we’re playing the same format over a length of time. So there’s an opportunity to use this stretch to challenge ourselves. That will give us a chance to assess ourselves and will determine how we play Test cricket over the next few years.”Where Kohli felt the team had benefited most during the week-long camp in Bangalore was in the players’ personal interactions with Kumble and the manner in which he may have broken down barriers within the group.”We haven’t had too many camps before, but I feel there’s already a lot that the team has benefited from,” Kohli said. “If you have experience of facing different situations in the past, you are better equipped. Understanding of skills and understanding of mindset are two different things. Mindset can’t be taught, but it comes only when you have faced tough situations, and that’s one big difference.”The information we’ve got from him about mental adjustments needed to win has been a big boost. He’s been more than willing to speak to everyone equally – the pacers, spinners, batsmen – and address their concerns. There’s an emotional connect with the coach, no doubt, but it’s about how he makes the players feel comfortable. That’s what I believe.”Anil has all those qualities in abundance. There’s huge respect within the group for what he’s achieved and also because he’s been Test captain. He understands that and makes them comfortable, so I feel the combination has settled in beautifully. He’s been involved with the players in some way or the other throughout.”Kohli brushed aside concerns over an elbow injury sustained by R Ashwin while batting during the camp, saying he had only suffered a bruise.When asked about Mohammed Shami’s return to the Test side for the first time since recovering from a long-term knee injury, Kohli enthused about his ability to generate reverse-swing. The skill was on display on his debut against West Indies at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, where he returned match figures of 9 for 118 – the best figures by an Indian fast bowler on Test debut.”Shami is a skillful guy, we all know that. The way he bowls, the way he releases the ball, pitches the ball, it’s more or less perfect for Test cricket,” Kohli said. “The lines and lengths he bowls are always attacking. The best thing is when it’s seaming and swinging, he can bowl conventional lines and lengths. If it’s reverse-swinging, he knows exactly where to bring in the ball from. He has a great sense and feel of how to get batsmen out. We have been working with him on the mental strength aspect of his game. More consistency is something we push for him.”He’s eager to prove himself and come back after injury. We’ve seen when West Indies came to India in 2013, how he brought out his reverse-swing skills. Even in Adelaide in one of the sessions he brought us back into the game with two wickets. So he’s always someone on whom we can bank in terms of picking wickets. In short bursts, if you want a good attacking spell, Shami can deliver that for you. He’s got pace, a great bouncer – so he’s someone we always back because he knows he can take two-three wickets for us at any stage. I’m glad to have him back.”