It was Ravi's (Shastri) idea to promote Hardik up the order, says skipper Kohli
India captain Virat Kohli revealed that it was head coach Ravi Shastri's idea to promote all-rounder Hardik Pandya up the order, which eventually paid rich dividends for the home side in the series-clinching five-wicket victory over Australia in the third One-day International, in Indore, on Sunday.
Coming in to bat at the No. 4 position, Pandya played a delightful 78-run knock off 72 balls to steer India home while chasing a competitive 294 for victory.
"I'm really, really satisfied with the win. He (Pandya) is a star; has the ability with the ball, bat and in the field. We need a guy like that; we've been missing an explosive all- rounder. He is a great asset for Indian cricket," Kohli said after the match.
"The idea behind his promotion was Ravi (Shastri) bhai, to attack the spinner," he added.
Pandya rose to the occasion yet again with a fluent knock as India registered a comfortable victory to grab the number one ranking.
India overhauled the target with 13 balls to spare, in front of a packed Holkar stadium, to take a series-clinching 3-0 lead.
Openers Rohit Sharma (71) and Ajikya Rahane (70) set the platform for victory with a 131-run partnership, while Pandya steered the side to victory with his crucial knock, which came off 72 balls.
Kohli also backed his two wrist spinners, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal.
"Wrist spinners need to be backed; they won't always get grip from the wicket, but they possess the ability to get wickets."
He said he backed his bowling unit to make a strong comeback after Australia were off to a flying start.
"Steve (Smith) mentioned the first 35 overs was good from their end; we knew when we get 2-3 wickets with their lower middle order, we could pull things back. It was a 330-340 wicket.
"Coming back from difficult situations has been a feature of this team. They were 35-40 runs short."
Kohli also hinted that with the series in their pocket, India may try out a few reserve players in the last two games of the five-match series.
"We might try few players now, but mindset remains the same. Journey stops only after the fifth game," he said.
Australia skipper Smith said the visitors have themselves to blame for losing the tempo after being in a strong position.
"We set it up beautifully in the first 37-38 overs. We put ourselves in a good position, but the Indian bowlers executed well; we executed poorly.
"We needed 330-plus. Hardik was magnificent in end there. Finchy (Aaron Finch) played magnificently. The wicket slowed up a little bit for both teams. The ball came on for the first 35 overs in both innings."
Man-of-the-match Pandya said he saw the promotion as a good opportunity to unleash his potential.
"It feels pretty good, but I would like to finish the game next time. I don't need to be surprised. It is important to back myself and saw it as an opportunity," he said.
"I wanted to target the left-arm spinner (Ashton Agar). When I got a few sixes, I knew I could take some time."
