R. Sridhar divulges how Virat Kohli messaged him at midnight to prepare for 'Mission Melbourne'

In a chat with Ravichandran Ashwin on his YouTube channel, India's fielding coach R, Sridhar revealed how Virat Kohli and the coaching staff prepared for 'Mission Melbourne' at midnight after they were bowled out for 36 runs in Adelaide.

Sridhar talked about how Virat Kohli messaged the former late into the night after the Adelaide Test debacle, and how that led to some planning for Melbourne.

"It was midnight, around 12.30 am, the night we lost the Adelaide Test. Virat Kohli messaged me: ‘What are you doing?’ I was shocked. I thought ‘why is he messaging at this time?’ I told him ‘head coach (Ravi Shastri), myself, Bharat Arun and Vikram Rathour are sitting together’.

He said, ‘I’ll also join you’. I said, ‘no problem, come over.’ He came there, and all of us started discussing. That’s where ‘Mission Melbourne’ began. Shastri made a point there: ‘This 36, wear it like a badge! This 36 is what will make this team great’,” said R. Sridhar.

Sridhar further explained how the Indian team decided to strengthen their bowling by bringing in Ravindra Jadeja in place of Virat Kohli, even though they were bowled out for a paltry 36.

"After a 36 all-out, usually, teams would strengthen their batting. But Ravi Shastri, Virat, and Ajinkya decided to strengthen the bowling. That’s how we replaced Virat with Ravindra Jadeja, and it was a masterstroke." said Sridhar

WATCH - Exclusive: Head Coach @RaviShastriOfc delivers a dressing room speech at Gabba.A special series win in Australia calls for a special speech from the Head Coach. Do not miss!Full 📽️📽️https://t.co/kSk2mbp309 #TeamIndia pic.twitter.com/Ga5AaMvkim

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The move to bring in Ravindra Jadeja did turn out to be a masterstroke, with the all-rounder scoring a crucial fifty (57) in the first innings. With the ball, Jadeja picked three wickets and on the field, he removed Steve Smith with a direct hit.

Ravi Shastri asked Indian team to wear the 36 like a 'badge'

Team India celebrating their series win.

Even though Virat Kohli was set to head back to India after the first Test, the Indian skipper was quite clearly involved in the decision making for the Melbourne Test. Ravi Shastri too deserves a lot of credit for picking up the team's morale after their deflating defeat in Adelaide.

Sridhar revealed how Ravi Shastri used the '36 all out' as a rallying cry for the team.

"After 36 all-out, you didn't know what's next. Then Ravi (Shastri) bhai gathered the team and said: 'Wear this 36 like a badge on your sleeves, and you will be a great team."

On the back of a series win in Australia, India are now on top of the ICC World Test Championship table. They will get a chance to consolidate their top spot when they take on England in a four match Test-series starting next month.

India on 🔝After the hard-fought win at The Gabba, India move to the No.1 spot in ICC World Test Championship standings 💥Australia slip to No.3 👇#WTC21 pic.twitter.com/UrTLE4Rui0

— ICC (@ICC) January 19, 2021