"It is my first full series. It's a great opportunity to create some momentum knowing it's a three-Test series, having some plan in mind, having the opportunity and time to execute them," said Kohli at the pre-match press conference.
"Even if it's an off day, you still have time to re-group and think about what went wrong. If it's a good day you can learn from it, the positives and the areas that need improvement. As a captain you always need more time with the team, more games to play and better chances of creating an environment that you require the team to be in. So I am very excited. It's an opportunity not only for me but all of us for a new Indian team. We are all pretty early in our careers and it's exciting," he added.
"I have been reminded of that quite a few times and I know that now," he said, about India's poor record.
India's preparations, however, suffered a blow as their pre-match practice session was washed out owing to heavy rains, and even on Monday, their session had been disturbed by the rain, leaving the three-day tour match in Colombo as the only proper workout before this first Test.
But Kohli doesn't seem to be too worried about it.
"So it's not going to make much difference. I see it as a positive where people will have the time to visualise, relax and prepare for the game with the mental aspect than putting those extra hours in practice.
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