India are like All Blacks, hails Sri Lanka coach Nic Pothas

[Ali Bohra]

" India are ruthless in the way they go about their work.. their work ethic is immense. They are what a lot of teams aspire to be " ~ SL Coach

 

[Buffet]

Not often would you come across a Springbok (South African Rugby side) fan going gaga over rivals All Blacks but that is what exactly Sri Lanka coach Nic Pothas did.

Rugby is a huge sport in New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. These teams often play tri-nation series. New Zealand’s All Blacks, who are the defending World Champions in rugby, are peerless. Not often would you come across a Springbok (South African Rugby side) fan going gaga over rivals All Blacks but that is what exactly Nic Pothas, Sri Lanka’s South African coach did while praising India who routed Sri Lanka 9-0 in the recently concluded tour. India became the first team to visit a nation and met out this sort of a drubbing.

Calling Indian skipper Virat Kohli a “role model”, Pothas told reporters after the one-off T20I at R Premadasa Stadium, “You’ve got to look at the quality they have in that side. It is a side with immense quality. It is always going to be tough to compete against them, or to try and beat them. They do so many things very well. You see how Virat Kohli runs between the wickets. You see the respect he commands on the field as a leader. He is a role model to people and he pulls people with him. When you look at the way they go about their work and the culture that Virat has created within that team, it’s very, very impressive.”

India whitewashed Sri Lanka 3-0 in Tests before effecting a 5-0 drubbing in ODIs and only the only T20I too. Kohli was the Man of the Match for his 84.

Drawing reference with All Black’s dominance in rugby, Pothas added, “You look at their team and they are very All-Black-like. There is a lot of respect for the opposition. They are very ruthless in the way they go about their work. Their work ethic is immense. They are what a lot of teams aspire to be. The most important thing for us is learning from our mistakes, but most importantly, learning from them.”

View attachment 76075

Pothas believes that Sri Lanka will only learn and get better from this bitter experience, and his side has very good players who have the potential to become world-class. Praising former Sri Lankan skipper Angelo Mathews, Pothas hailed him as a world-class cricketer and said it is unfair to judge him “over a short spate of games.”

“It’s very tough on Angie. When you’re a senior player, obviously the opposition targets you. Then you have that pressure of being a senior player to perform. It’s very, very tough. Angie is a world-class cricketer and I don’t think you can ever judge any person over a short spate of games. We’re all cliched about it, but form is temporary and Angie is a class cricketer. Outside of being a class cricketer he’s a very, very intelligent man. So he’ll go back, work on it, we’ll have discussions – I have no issues with Angie,” Pothas added.

http://www.cricketcountry.com/news/india-are-like-all-blacks-hails-sri-lanka-coach-nic-pothas-640078

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I don't think parallel is justified right now. Let's see how Indians do in SA. One thing is sure, Kohli wants to win every single game and that will mean losing few tests which could have been drawn. It will also mean winning more often.

 

[troodon]

Anyone playing against this Lankan side can look like the GOAT team ever.

Our team is pretty good. But we still have some weaknesses that we need to address. Especially in LOI's.

One of the top 3 of Dhawan/Rohit/Kohli have to hit a century. Otherwise, our batting can get exposed. I am still not convinced about MSD bailing us out in case the top order collapses for nothing against better bowling units.

Pandey did not look confident even though he scored runs. That IPL fluency is missing. Luck was with him.
Pandya thinks he is playign T20 every game. Throws his wicket away easily.

India is a top heavy team. After that, we are just an average team when it comes to batting.

In bowling, we are an excellent team. BK/Bumrah are very good. Kuldeep is the best LOI bowler. Jaddu should replace Axar. Ahswin should not be near the LOI team. Shami and Yadav are not even playing and yet Indian attack is pretty good.

 

[the Great Khan]

I dont know about these gushing comparisons. But what I do know from what I see and hear is they are a very hard working team who have realised that fitness and hardwork are the only way you can succeed. I have to admit I started off liking Kohli, then hating him, and now I admire him more than ever. I recently saw a video of a masterclass he did with naseer hussein. Brilliant piece of cricket interviewing. Its on youtube so i would reccommend every budding cricketer to watch it. The way Kohli explains his thought processes and method is excellent. You dont hit big runs by turning up to training with a fat belly and moaning about your coach and his bad manners. You get on with it and work hard.

In one segment Kohli explains how he was having major problems with the swing outswinger and how he tried to solve the problem. The guy worked on it for nearly four hours until his four arms were hurting. This is what commitment is. I always admire cricketers who may not be immensely talented but work hard. Kohli is talented but its his work ethic that sets him apart. And sachin was the best at this.

Thats why I like Azhar ali and some of these new youngsters who have watched Kohli etc work hard and want to be better than them. Unlike a certain mob who love their biryani and moan when the coach tells them to work hard.

 

[Syed1]

If Pakistan is ever in a situation where the opposition comes to OUR home and blanks us 9 - zip and our coach is seen praising them like this, I hope he loses his job before the sun sets on that day. Absolutely shameless.

 

[sachin100]

As others said above india is a top heavy team with openers and kohli doing most of the work.

Others are hit and miss. I liked what i saw in manish pandey in this series.

India needs another good batsman after pandey and jhadav is not the answer. Dhoni is also in his last legs.

I would pick kuldeep yadav in every match because he is a wrist spinner and he has variety.

Conclusion dia is a good side but no where near all blacks level. There are still so many holes in the line up to be filled

 

[mak36]

If Pakistan is ever in a situation where the opposition comes to OUR home and blanks us 9 - zip and our coach is seen praising them like this, I hope he loses his job before the sun sets on that day. Absolutely shameless.

I wouldn't say it was shameless. Rather I would say it is "sharamful."

 

[IndYeah1]

Anyone playing against this Lankan side can look like the GOAT team ever.

Aren't SL playing Pakistan soon? That series should prove or disprove this notion that anybody playing against SL "can look like GOAT".

Sure, SL is weak right now, and definitely the Indian team has a long way to go before it can be considered "great". But this clean sweep across tests, ODIs and the lone T20 was quite clinical. Got to give credit where its due.

 

[Stallion__]

Unconvincing attempt to justify the failure of his team

 

[Napa]

Anyone playing against this Lankan side can look like the GOAT team ever.

For example the recent Australian visitors

 

[Buffet]

Aren't SL playing Pakistan soon? That series should prove or disprove this notion that anybody playing against SL "can look like GOAT".

Given that SL will be playing in UAE and not at home, good performance by SL in few matches will tell us something about SL. I personally think that Indians played really well and SL played poorly. Both had to happen at the same time otherwise you are not going to see every single match being one sided and home side getting whitewashed in all formats. Credit should be given to Indians. They are too strong in Asian conditions.

Let's see if all matches are one sided in UAE. That will be a good indication.

 

[Chrish]

I wouldn't even call WI side of 70s/80s All Blacks.

Let India win test series in SA/ Eng/Australia and even NZ first before making such nonsensical comparison

 

[Varun]

Yawn, it was just Lanka. Get a grip everyone.

 

[Aman]

Good joke.

Call me when India wins consecutive WCs, holds an 80% W/L record over their history and holds the number 1 ranking for almost a decade.

 

[Aman]

Not often would you come across a Springbok (South African Rugby side) fan going gaga over rivals All Blacks but that is what exactly Sri Lanka coach Nic Pothas did.

Rugby is a huge sport in New Zealand, Australia and South Africa. These teams often play tri-nation series. New Zealand’s All Blacks, who are the defending World Champions in rugby, are peerless. Not often would you come across a Springbok (South African Rugby side) fan going gaga over rivals All Blacks but that is what exactly Nic Pothas, Sri Lanka’s South African coach did while praising India who routed Sri Lanka 9-0 in the recently concluded tour. India became the first team to visit a nation and met out this sort of a drubbing.

Calling Indian skipper Virat Kohli a “role model”, Pothas told reporters after the one-off T20I at R Premadasa Stadium, “You’ve got to look at the quality they have in that side. It is a side with immense quality. It is always going to be tough to compete against them, or to try and beat them. They do so many things very well. You see how Virat Kohli runs between the wickets. You see the respect he commands on the field as a leader. He is a role model to people and he pulls people with him. When you look at the way they go about their work and the culture that Virat has created within that team, it’s very, very impressive.”

India whitewashed Sri Lanka 3-0 in Tests before effecting a 5-0 drubbing in ODIs and only the only T20I too. Kohli was the Man of the Match for his 84.

Drawing reference with All Black’s dominance in rugby, Pothas added, “You look at their team and they are very All-Black-like. There is a lot of respect for the opposition. They are very ruthless in the way they go about their work. Their work ethic is immense. They are what a lot of teams aspire to be. The most important thing for us is learning from our mistakes, but most importantly, learning from them.”

View attachment 76075

Pothas believes that Sri Lanka will only learn and get better from this bitter experience, and his side has very good players who have the potential to become world-class. Praising former Sri Lankan skipper Angelo Mathews, Pothas hailed him as a world-class cricketer and said it is unfair to judge him “over a short spate of games.”

“It’s very tough on Angie. When you’re a senior player, obviously the opposition targets you. Then you have that pressure of being a senior player to perform. It’s very, very tough. Angie is a world-class cricketer and I don’t think you can ever judge any person over a short spate of games. We’re all cliched about it, but form is temporary and Angie is a class cricketer. Outside of being a class cricketer he’s a very, very intelligent man. So he’ll go back, work on it, we’ll have discussions – I have no issues with Angie,” Pothas added.

http://www.cricketcountry.com/news/india-are-like-all-blacks-hails-sri-lanka-coach-nic-pothas-640078

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I don't think parallel is justified right now. Let's see how Indians do in SA. One thing is sure, Kohli wants to win every single game and that will mean losing few tests which could have been drawn. It will also mean winning more often.

It will never be justifiable.

We've produced consecutive GOAT teams. Being a SA, you should know how silly this comparison is.

 

[Sidilicious]

Good joke.

Call me when India wins consecutive WCs, holds an 80% W/L record over their history and holds the number 1 ranking for almost a decade.

But still can't beat the lions

 

[Major]

Australia dominated world cricket, india doesnt dominate cricket like that

 

[kingusama92]

Can you imagine what the All-Blacks would do to the rugby equivalent of SL?

It would be a massacre.

Pothas seems to be justifying his team's performance but they were complete rubbish.

 

[sachin100]

Australia dominated world cricket, india doesnt dominate cricket like that

Absolutely. What he said is far from the truth. I being an Indian think it as over the top praise to justify his team failings

 

[Aman]

But still can't beat the lions

It took the ABs being reduced to 14 men for most of the second game and a dodgy call at the close of the 3rd Test to draw a series with the ABs.

The Lions led for something like 3 minutes in the entire series

 

[Buffet]

It will never be justifiable.

Probably true. It's a tall order to do it. First Indians have to match great WI and great Aus team and then think about it. Theoretically possible, but practically a very low odds for any country doing it. No country has done it so far.

Having said that I hesitate to use never word just my nature.

 

[Hasan123]

OTT comments here but India under Kohli seem much more ruthless and will win more games then they will lose. Kohli has to improve tactically in LO and in tests he must ensure his team competes in overseas tests.

 

[Arham_PakFan]

India are good but they aren't even close to being that good.

 

[squarecut]

India played 9 matches and won all 9 played in Sri Lanka. From this thread, I gather that winning just 9-0 does not make India all that great. Apparently a truly great Ausralian team of yore would have won 18 matches out of 9 played.

 

[kingusama92]

India played 9 matches and won all 9 played in Sri Lanka. From this thread, I gather that winning just 9-0 does not make India all that great. Apparently a truly great Ausralian team of yore would have won 18 matches out of 9 played.

I think it's more about prolonged winning streaks.

1) Australia won 12 straight tests at home (1999-2001)
2) Australia won three WCs in a row (34 game winning streak!)
3) Australia Went 20-1-2 in Test Series (Only Losing To India In 2000/01)

That team was on another planet.

Beating up a rubbish SL squad is nice but it's not worthy of such comparisons.

 

[ask_analyse_act]

Trying to shield the lacklustre performance of his team by praising the opponent. He needs to concentrate on how to fix his team rather blabbering. Their team is facing just what pak do at the hands of Misbah and waqar. Inconsistent selection policies, batting orders, fielding lapses.

 

[R0H1T]

I think it's more about prolonged winning streaks.

1) Australia won 12 straight tests at home (1999-2001)
2) Australia won three WCs in a row (34 game winning streak!)
3) Australia Went 20-1-2 in Test Series (Only Losing To India In 2000/01)

That team was on another planet.

Beating up a rubbish SL squad is nice but it's not worthy of such comparisons.

You could say the same about WI in the 80's & that team didn;t even get to play so many tests that Australia did, especially at home.

 

[R0H1T]

Probably true. It's a tall order to do it. First Indians have to match great WI and great Aus team and then think about it. Theoretically possible, but practically a very low odds for any country doing it. No country has done it so far.

Having said that I hesitate to use never word just my nature.

Probably because pitch plays such a huge role in cricket, unlike any other team sport where one facet of the game can pretty much decide the outcome of it.

 

[Major]

I think it's more about prolonged winning streaks.

1) Australia won 12 straight tests at home (1999-2001)
2) Australia won three WCs in a row (34 game winning streak!)
3) Australia Went 20-1-2 in Test Series (Only Losing To India In 2000/01)

That team was on another planet.

Beating up a rubbish SL squad is nice but it's not worthy of such comparisons.

Exactly.

The australian team was soo great that even till today that team has its influence on the image of the current australian team

 

[CanadianG00se]

OTT comment by Sri Lankan coach. Indian team is pretty good in Asian conditions but untested in away conditions. Upcoming tour to SA will be a test for Kohli and its men.

 

[Aman]

All Blacks defeated SA 57-0 to set a new record against SA, which beats the record set last year (57-15) [MENTION=97523]Buffet[/MENTION]

https://streamable.com/9z7l3

The teams we've had since have 2011 have been on an entirely different level.

You could put an all time greatest cricket XI and I don't think it would compare to those AB teams.

That's how incredible they are.

 

[IndianWillow]

A convenient way to mask failures for SL coach. India is a very good team but I dont see how this Indian batting can match the quality of the ODI side that had Sehwag, Ganguly, Sachin, Yuvraj etc.

 

[Slog]

India is a good side but far from being a great side right now

 

[Joseph Gomes]

I think it's more about prolonged winning streaks.

1) Australia won 12 straight tests at home (1999-2001)
2) Australia won three WCs in a row (34 game winning streak!)
3) Australia Went 20-1-2 in Test Series (Only Losing To India In 2000/01)

That team was on another planet.

Beating up a rubbish SL squad is nice but it's not worthy of such comparisons.

Those numbers are something out of a video game. Beyond ridiculous. Sad to see Australia regress that much

 

[Slog]

Those numbers are something out of a video game. Beyond ridiculous. Sad to see Australia regress that much

The 'regress' of Australia is vastly overstated

They are the World Champions

And even if you just look at last 3-4 years their head to head record against most sides is in their favor. I think only SL might have a better H2H against them

 

[Joseph Gomes]

The 'regress' of Australia is vastly overstated

They are the World Champions

And even if you just look at last 3-4 years their head to head record against most sides is in their favor. I think only SL might have a better H2H against them

They got whitewashed 5-0 in South Africa. That too without ABD

 

[Slog]

They got whitewashed 5-0 in South Africa. That too without ABD

i was talking abt tests

but yes even in tests i guess SA have a better H2H against them

 

[90MPH]

What a ridiculous statement.

This same Sri Lankan team only just beat Zimbabwe in a Test series and lost an ODI series against them.

The problem is their team, not so much that India are "like the all blacks" who are struggling now against Australia and also lost the final against Pak as well.

 

[Kohli The King of Chase]

Poor statement from this guy. And, our neighbors would be mocking us with this statement, whenever we lose.

Coming to this match, poor from our batsmen.

 

[joly]

lol, this Indian team isn't even in India's top-3 team ever. We aren't good actually, batting is really weak. poor statement from the guy to hide his ***