Virat Kohli says he has nothing to prove ahead of England Test series

Indian captain Virat Kohli brushed off talk of having to prove his batting ability on English soil ahead of the five-match test series against the hosts starting at Edgbaston on Wednesday.

Kohli struggled to make an impact when India last toured England in 2014, scoring 134 runs in 10 innings, but has since emerged as one of the most reliable batsmen in the world across all three formats of the game.

“I’m not in a frame of mind to prove myself in any country, I just want to perform for the team,” the 29-year-old told a news conference on Tuesday, ahead of what will be England’s 1000th five-day match.

“Obviously I want to score runs for the team and I want to take Indian cricket forward, and that’s my only motive.”

Kohli said he had matured as a person and was not affected by criticism of his performance in the four years since India’s 3-1 series defeat by England.