Virat was superb with the bat: Dhoni

India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni praised Virat Kohli for showing "excellent temperament" during their tricky yet successful run-chase against New Zealand in the second Test in Bangalore.

"Virat was superb with the bat. There are two ways to tackle the pressure. Either you fight through it or you just soak in it, and I believe Virat really batted well. He showed excellent temperament," Dhoni said at the post-match presentation ceremony.

India were in trouble after losing three quick wickets, but Kohli and Dhoni put on a good partnership and stayed till the end to see the team through. Speaking about the pitch and the conditions, Dhoni said it felt like the Indians were playomg at Napier.

"It seemed as if we were not playing in Bangalore but in Napier. Ashwin and Ojha combined well and they were ably supported by Zaheer and Umesh. There was something for the bowlers in the pitch. The New Zealanders got a bit more purchase from the wicket but our spinners were brilliant," Dhoni stated.

Man of the match Kohli, said the situation when he came out to bat was a tricky one. "It was a tricky situation when I went out to bat. Me and MS decided that we would target 10 runs at a time and it worked for us."

Asked about the areas of batting that he has worked on, Kohli replied, "I needed to be more patient and it worked. There was more turn (on offer) today and it was a great wicket."

Ravichandran Ashwin was named the Man-of-the-Series for his haul of 18 wickets from the two Tests. He conceded that it was a difficult job to get wickets on the track that was on offer in Bangalore but felt that variation in pace did the trick for him.

"This pitch was a bit more challenging. I tried to alter the pace on the third day; it was a bit more docile. I enjoy bounce, that's one of the important ingredients I require from a pitch," Ashwin said.

He was also appreciative of Pragyan Ojha who complimented him well through out the matches. "I have always maintained the he is a very good bowler. We share a long association. We have been together for around 16-17 years and Ojha really, he compliments me well. I am happy that he got a five-for in the first innings," he said.

New Zealand captain Ross Taylor hailed his team for putting up a good fight in the second Test after facing an innings defeat in the first Test at Hyderabad. "We had our chances. The boys really showed great character to come back from a terrible Test in Hyderabad."

He added that the Kiwis had a good chance of winning the match when India lost a few quick wickets and gave credit to Kholi and Dhoni for they way they rescued the home team out of trouble.

"They lost five wickets for 50 runs in the first innings and once we got three quick wickets during the second innings we believed we were in with a chance. But the way Kohli and Dhoni batted was outstanding," he said.

Taylor was happy with the Bangalore pitch, saying it offered a bit for everyone. "You can't ask for more in a Test pitch. It had a bit of bounce and also spun towards the later half of the Test."

The Kiwi skipper was all praise for pacer Tim Southee, who took a career-best 7/64 in the first innings. and said played to certain standards which they maintained to an extent.

"We came with some standards to maintain, which we did in patches. We have learned a lot from this series and hopefully we can comeback a better team," Taylor said.