Mishra calls on India to stop dwelling on Antigua Test victory

Kingston, July 28 (ANI): After taking a one-nil lead in the four-match Test series against West Indies, Indian leg-spinner Amit Mishra has urged his side to forget their opening game victory and concentrate on maintaining the same momentum in the upcoming matches. Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who was adjudged `Man of the match`for contributing 113 runs and claimed seven wickets, led from the front as India claimed their biggest win outside Asia by defeating the Caribbean side by an innings and 92 runs in the first Test at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua. Lavishing praise on his side's performance, Mishra insisted that it was a collective effort and revealed the Virat Kohli-led side is extremely motivated with this historic win. "We are totally motivated by the win and great feeling how we won the first Test. It was a collective effort and we did well in batting, bowling, fielding, holding catches, it was a collective and an all-round effort. I feel that we should forget this now and totally concentrate on the Jamaica match. And for us, the effort will be that we can move on from the win yet continue to do well in the coming matches," the 33-year-old, who contributed modest 53 runs and clinched three wickets overall in the Antigua Test, said. Mishra insisted although he is quite satisfied with his performance, he would try to grab few more wickets in the upcoming match. "As Ashwin was getting wickets in the last match so my role was to keep maintaining the pressure and keep bowling. I am very satisfied with my performance, but I will try to claim few more wickets in this Test," he added. Reflecting on newly-appointed head coach Anil Kumble's contribution to the team, Mishra said the legendary cricketer keeps guiding him about various aspects of batting and bowling and that the team is really lucky to have him. "Anil (Kumble) bhai has experience of so many years. I am very lucky that Kumble is with me in the team now. He is a legend of the Indian team. When I was making my debut, he had retired. So, I could only talk to him intermittently. Now, he is with me and we are able to talk a lot more. He keeps telling me about the different aspects of batting and bowling, how to bowl to tailenders and how to bring about more confidence while batting in the lower order," Mishra said. The two sides will play their next match at Sabina Park in Jamaica beginning July 30. (ANI)