The countdown for the Border Gavaskar Trophy series has begun as in a couple of days from now, the Indian team will take on Australia on their home soil. The 1st Test will take place at the Optus Stadium in Perth, where Australia are yet to lose a Test and India will play there for …
AUS vs IND: Former Australia stars hype Virat Kohli ahead of Border Gavaskar Test series
The countdown for the Border Gavaskar Trophy series has begun as in a couple of days from now, the Indian team will take on Australia on their home soil. The 1st Test will take place at the Optus Stadium in Perth, where Australia are yet to lose a Test and India will play there for the 1st time in the red-ball format. All eyes have been on Virat Kohli, who has returned to Australian soil for his 5th Test tour. The hype for the star India batter has been real as Kohli headlined the front pages of the Australian newspapers as the media seemed quite excited over his return.
Not just the media, the former Australian players have also hyped Kohli ahead of the Test series and have backed him to make a comeback. Kohli did not enjoy a great home Test season in the lead-up to the Border Gavaskar Trophy series. The former Australian stars like Ricky Ponting hailed Kohli as a superstar and Justin Langer urged to not write off the 36-year-old this easily. Ian Healy also suggested ways to tackle Kohli and Michael Clarke felt that the star batter needs to be the top run-scorer if India aimed to beat Australia.
Virat Kohli is a superstar: Ricky Ponting
“Kohli is a star,” Ricky Ponting told ICC.
“He’s a superstar, has been a superstar of the game for so long. He’s passionate about the way that he plays. He’s passionate about his team. He wants to win and he plays with his heart on his sleeve.”
“That’s what superstar players generate and create all around the world. And there’s lots of different degrees of that,” he explains.
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If India aim to win, Kohli should be top run-scorer: Michael clarke
“Virat Kohli’s record in Australia is phenomenal. I actually think his record is better than what it is in India. I think he’s got six hundreds in 13 Tests in Australia.”
“If India are to win this series, it has to be Virat Kohli leading run scorer with Rishabh Pant just behind,” he added.
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Body bash Virat Kohli, have him jumping: Ian Healy
“Body bash. Bowl at the back armpit, that’s the right arm as a right-handed batsman âæ and it’s got to be hot,” Ian Healy told SENQ Breakfast.
“Have him jumping at times if he wants to ride those deliveries – ducking, weaving or bending backwards.
“Get that short leg position right next to him on the leg side and if you need a bumper, it’s got to go at the badge. He might try to bust out of a hard spell with a hook shot or pull shot and that will be hard to control if it’s badge height.”
“The first matchup I’m looking at is how our quicks can bowl to Virat Kohli, and I think they should target his front pad quite often,” he said.
“He sits that front foot there and he can play from anywhere – he can play square on the off-side, he can whip onto the leg-side or he can rock back âæ but they’ve got to look for any sort of insecurity in his form and maybe target that front pad.
“But don’t do it every ball because he’ll get used to it âæ it’s the impact ball that has to be on the front pad after he is set up with seam.”
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Virat Kohli has been a superhuman: Shane Watson
“The one thing that I know of Virat is… because the fire burns so brightly and deep inside him, the intensity he brings to every ball that he is engaged in a game has been superhuman,” Watson said in the Willow Talk Podcast.
“But, there have been in recent times where moments in this career that fire has started to go out because it is just so hard to maintain that intensity in every moment he is involved in a game. And, that is where Australia have to leave him alone and hope he doesn’t bring the intensity — nine out of 10 intensity — to every ball,.” he added.
“When he has succeeded in Australia, it’s because he has been completely engaged with everything happening on the field. Every ball, every moment – he is fiercely intense, and that focus blocks out all distractions. That’s when he’s at his absolute best,” Watson noted.
“If there’s noise around him and that intensity isn’t there, you’ll see a lesser version of Virat. From an Australian perspective, let’s hope we get that version of him,” he added.
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I worry about Kohli in Australia, he will be amongst runs: David Warner
“I don’t worry about Virat Kohli away from Australia, I worry about Virat Kohli in Australia. He averages 55,” Warner told reporters on Tuesday.
“He hasn’t had the wickets that batsman would love to be batting on and that’s what scares me about him and Rohit Sharma … With good batting wickets, hopefully this summer, I think Virat is going to be amongst the runs.”
As well as more favourable batting conditions, Warner thought the profile of the series would bring out the best in 36-year-old Kohli.
“I’ve always said you’re not out of form, you’re out of runs,” Warner added.
“The class and player that he is, he just knows how to flick that switch and turn his mindset to big series, and Border-Gavaskar trophy, he’s always had a big series against us. I think that’s what Australia would be fearing.”
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Would like to see Kohli scoring one more hundred in Australia: Mitchell Johnson
“The 36-year-old is most likely in Australia for the final time on a Test tour. It’s a place he’s done well. He averages 54.08 in Australia – higher than his career average of 47.83 and few batsmen around the world can say that.His form hasn’t been at its best recently, and he will be under pressure to perform again here in front of the many Indian fans who will turn out,” Johnson wrote for the Western Australia.
“I wonder if the situation will give him all the determination he needs or if it will all be too much for him. As a fan now watching on, maybe I’d like to see him make one more Test ton in Australia. As his adversary from a decade ago, maybe not.”
“Ultimately, I want to see the best against the best and a series played with all the fire and urgency that has come to mark this great rivalry. And I know that’s where Virat will feel right at home,” he added.
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You never write-off champions: Justin Langer
“One thing you never do is write off champions, and that’s in every sport, because they are a champion for a reason. In India, there are one and a half billion cricket-loving people, and then count all the rest around the world, they expect nothing but excellence, and the team will be under intense pressure, so how they fight back will be important,” he told The West Australian.
“And they’ll be getting written off for being too old, but people say that all the time, and I just can’t wait to see them play. I just hope, if this is the last time (Kohli) is out here, people enjoy it because he is a superstar, so is Rohit Sharma, so is (Ravi) Ashwin, so is (Ravi) Jadeja, so is (Jasprit) Bumrah. It’s the same with the Australians; the bowling attack is a very senior attack now… so really enjoy it while you can; they are not going to be around forever,” said Langer.
