Virat Kohli explains reason for dropping Amit Mishra for 2nd Test vs South Africa

Amit Mishra had temporarily become Kohli’s most trusted bowler in Ravichandran Ashwin’s absence

India currently lead the 4-match Test series against South Africa 1-0 and were well posed to increase the lead in Bengaluru before rains washed out the 2^nd Test. However, one decision which left some questions was the inclusion of Stuart Binny as the fifth bowling option, in place of Amit Mishra.

It was not that Mishra’s absence hurt the Indian bowling unit much, however, as Ravi Ashwin and Ravi Jadeja tore through the South African batsmen, taking four wickets each to leave them all out at 214. Binny bowled three overs only – giving away only 1 run, but not offering much threat either.

Asked to explain the decision to drop Mishra, who was responsible for removing world No.1 Test batsman AB de Villiers twice in the first Test, Kohli said that all-rounders were being used flexibly in his side depending on the conditions available, according to Cricket Australia.

"I think you have to choose the allrounder according to conditions. You can't be stubborn about the ability.

"You have to consider who can do the right job in those conditions, because some people will be more effective. This team is about flexibility. We did not bowl Amit Mishra here. Of course, he's bowled well in the past few months. But he understood we needed someone like Stuart in these conditions."

No set combination in this India team: Kohli

Mishra had some recent trouble in Bengaluru with the law, but captain Kohli insisted that it was because of how the pitch was predicted to react why Mishra was left out.

"Bangalore does something in the last couple of days (of the match), and this is the feedback we got from the guys who have played here and bowled on this pitch. There's no set combination in this team.

“Everyone is ready to play at any stage and willing to perform for the team, which is a positive sign.”

India lead the four-match series 1-0 after the washout in Bangalore, and now both teams head to Nagpur for the third Test starting on November 25. We could not come to know whether Binny’s presence would have been more beneficial than Mishra’s in the second Test because of persistent rainfall, and Binny’s limited presence in the match did not help matters either.

Who gets the nod in Nagpur between Mishra and Binny remains to be seen. Mishra had figures of 2/35 and 1/26 from the first Test, to put against Binny’s 0/1 in the second.