Quick nature of skipper Virat Kohli's epic double ton in the first innings of the second Test versus South Africa in Pune has given his team more time to force a result and take a 2-0 unassailable lead in the three-match series, said India opener Mayank Agarwal.
Virat struck his seventh double hundred (254*) in Test cricket and had substantial partnerships with Ajinkya Rahane and Ravindra Jadeja as India declared at a colossal 601/5 on Day 2. His 366-ball innings included 35 boundaries and came at a very good strike-rate of 75.59.
"Definitely, it has put us in driver's seat and it's not just the amount of runs but at what pace those runs have come has made a huge difference," Day 1 centurion Agarwal told reporters after stumps with South Africa reeling at 36/3.
"The double hundred has given the team extra session and a half, which becomes very crucial. The partnership between Virat and Jadeja was fabulous and almost at run-a-ball 230-odd (225), which is fabulous. If you are looking to win games, then you want to have that time to get 20 wickets."
"To get a 250, it's no joke and way he is batting is tremendous. The positivity and intent are fabulous. The records and his scores, prove everything that we all need to see (learn)," he added.
Read Also: Stats - List of records created by Virat Kohli in Pune Test
Virat, along with Rahane, ensured India survive the new ball against Kagiso Rabada and Vernon Philander before the duo consolidated.
"Virat and Rahane during the last evening, around an hour and a half, when the ball was doing a bit under lights, played really tight," said Agarwal. "They didn't give the opposition a wicket, in the first session and that put us in driver's seat and we could do what we did in the second session."
On a personal note, Agarwal said following the process rigorously rather than worrying about instant results has been the key to his success.
"You need to put a mark (target) and make sure that at the end of the year, whatever time (frame) you have set, you tick those boxes."
"Sometimes you put in the effort and it's not like you get instant result. You have to keep doing your things, keep ticking the boxes, keep improving, putting in performances year after year, the selection will eventually come," he said.
Agarwal stressed playing for India A in varying conditions against quality oppositions has certainly helped him bridge the gap between the Ranji Trophy and Test cricket.
"India A games really helped to bridge the gap between domestic and international cricket, because the kind of (domestic) teams you are facing and kind of teams other countries are fielding, for those games, are top quality. So you know that you are almost playing international standard bowling," he concluded.
(Inputs from PTI)
