Former chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar Sunday claimed he had fast-tracked Virat Kohli’s entry into the Indian team when captain MS Dhoni and coach Gary Kirsten “had not heard” of him. Vengsarkar was speaking after launching the book ‘Howzzat’ penned by celebrated astrologer Greenstone Lobo in suburban Bandra. “...Then I picked Virat Kohli in the (national) team straight away. “And I had gone to Australia to see the match and I had picked him (Virat) because they had won the Under 19 World Cup,’” recalled the former India captain. The 116 Test veteran also said that Tamil Nadu batsman S Badrinath had to make way for Virat.

Source: Hindustan Times April 21, 2019 17:26 UTC