"Two or three balls hit his helmet" - Sanjay Bangar on Virat Kohli's 'express pace' nets session after failure in IND vs SA 2018 1st Test

Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Bangar was the batting coach when Virat Kohli led Team India in a three-match Test series in South Africa in 2018. Although the visitors lost the series 2-1, they had a memorable win in Johannesburg, and Kohli was their best batter throughout the three games.

However, the tour didn't start on the right note as Kohli was dismissed cheaply by Morne Morkel in the first innings of the first Test. Bangar recently revealed that the former Indian captain then went to the nets and faced deliveries that were a lot quicker than expected.

Speaking to Star Sports ahead of the Test series between India and South Africa, Sanjay Bangar explained how Virat Kohli was fearless in facing deliveries that could have easily injured him. He said:

"When he got out to Morne Morkel in the Cape Town Test, he was dejected. He was keen on preparing well for the second Test. For that, he was facing up to express pace, I have rarely seen someone prepare like that. Two or three balls hit his helmet."

---

Virat Kohli carried the weight of the team: Sanjay Bangar

Virat Kohli fought back in the second Test and had his redemption with a sensational hundred at Centurion. He also scored a 54 and 41 in the two innings of the Johannesburg Test, which were no less than a hundred each given how tough it was for batting.

Sanjay Bangar believes it was Kohli who almost single-handedly kept India competitive in the series. He stated:

"He was carrying the weight of the team in the series. He prepared really well. The way he took on express pacers in the nets, he gave himself the best chance to play the way he did that day."

Virat Kohli finished the 2018 series with a staggering 286 runs from three games. India will hope he can replicate that purple patch this time around, with the first Test to begin at Centurion on Boxing Day.