Virat Kohli lauds biggest positive' Hardik Pandya as India win Sri Lanka Test series

Pallekelle: Team India captain Virat Kohli said that he was very happy with the performance by the Men in Blue in the third Test against Sri Lanka as they secured an innings victory here on Monday.

Virat Kohli further credited Hardik Pandya’s performance and said that his inclusion was definitely a positive aspect from the series.

"Good win for us. Very happy with the overall performance. Always feels nice to have convincing wins, pretty good day for us. The regulars have performed, but the biggest positive would be Hardik's inclusion and the way he shaped up in these three Test matches,” Kohli said during the post-match presentation.

India completed a 3-0 clean sweep over Sri Lanka in the Test series as they defeated hosts Sri Lanka by an innings and 171 runs in the third Test here on Monday.

Hardik Pandya was awarded as the Man of the Match for his maiden Test century, which helped India reach 487.

The captain also added that the young team were looking forward to play more Test matches.

“We are a young side, we look forward to play Test cricket, we look forward to play every single Test match with the same kind of excitement and that is the only way you can be ruthless.

" The usual suspects are always there and thereabouts. We like to be prepared before hand and be proactive rather than being reactive. We have age on our side and we have an opportunity to play together for five, six years for the country,” the 28-year-old further stated.

The Delhi batsman also stated that the Sri Lankan team is a talented lot.

“ All of them are super talented players (talking about the Sri Lankan team), that is why they are playing for the country. They beat Australia 3-0. Sometimes the side has momentum, sometimes they don't. It's all about keeping the belief going and not losing motivation because of a few results. That is what we believe in as a team as well,” Kohli concluded.

Having sealed the Test series against Sri Lanka 3-0, Virat Kohli and co will now hope to continue their good show in the five-match ODI series when the first ODI starts on August 20. While the ODI series conclude on September 3, the one-off T20 will be played on September 6.