Kohli backs Shaw, says he is a natural stroke-player, knows how to get runs

India skipper Virat Kohli feels young Prithvi Shaw, who didn't have a great outing in the first Test against New Zealand, is a "very destructive" player and all that he needs to do is have a clear frame of mind to come good.

In the Test series opener at the Basin Reserve, Shaw was found wanting against Tim Southee and Trent Boult in both the innings, thus drawing criticism over his technique.

"I don't think at this stage, we need to sit down and discuss what's going wrong because I don't see anything wrong. It's the execution of things which was not there," Kohli said while talking to reporters on Wednesday.

"It is just a matter of understanding the pace of the wicket and conditions as soon as possible. Again, when he (Shaw) is in a clear frame of mind, he is very, very destructive. Once he feels that he can do it, I think it will be a different ball game. The mindset can shift very quickly," he added.

Shaw has only played three matches for India till now in which he has scored 267 runs, including a hundred and a half-century.

The Indian skipper further said that Shaw, like every other batsman, wants to perform and for that he needs the confidence of the team as well as time, which the team management is willing to provide. "We need to give him that time to get used to the conditions a little bit and once he starts scoring, he will feel more confident about it," the captain said.

"He (Shaw) will figure out. He will find ways to score runs because he is a natural stroke-player and he scores runs. It is not that he gets small runs (when he gets them). He gets big runs and knows how to get runs.

"I think whenever we have done well overseas, the opening partnership has been with a lot of clarity and positivity even clearing the in-field, taking bowlers on so that you put them under pressure. He is that kind of a player," Kohli said.

India, after losing the first Test by 10 wickets, will now look to draw the series in the second match beginning Saturday at the Hagley Oval.