Overall, the Australian cricket team was the most aggressive on the field for the past two decades. They dominated the opposition on the field with their physical abilities, as well as dominating the mental side of the game. It proved very fruitful as the country became the most successful cricket nation in the world. But things have changed recently with the arrival of Virat Kohli.
Kohli is generally an aggressive player on the field with a mindset of giving back to the opposition. His captaincy in Test has been fruitful, as he has become the most successful Indian captain in the format. He also became the country’s first captain to win a Test series in Australia, as the Indian team dominated the hosts in 2018/19. The mere presence of Virat on the field has instilled a certain fear in the minds of opposing players.
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Observing Virat’s demeanor on the field and his passion for success, former India coach Greg Chappell has called Kohli the “most Australian non-Australian” cricketer of all time and thanked the “most important” figure. of sport for defending the cause of the test format. with his “total aggression”.
Chappell invoked Mahatma Gandhi before giving credit to Kohli’s intensity for causing a paradigm shift in Indian cricket.
“Many earlier Indian cricket teams tended to play with undue deference to their opponents, as if in accordance with the Gandhi principle. Sourav Ganguly was the first Indian captain to try to change that approach. It worked to some extent in India, but usually ran into a hurdle abroad, ”Chappell wrote in the ‘Sydney Morning Herald’.
“Virat Kohli does not believe in passive resistance. He is an advocate of total aggression. His idea is to dominate the opposition.
“Kohli is the most Australian non-Australian cricketer of all time. Embody the new India. As the first player and captain of the world’s leading cricket powerhouse, he feels an abiding responsibility towards the game as a whole. ”India will face Australia in a long-awaited four-match test series starting on December 17, but their talisman will go home after the first game for the birth of his first child.
Virat Kohli from India. (REUTERS)
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“The fact that Kohli’s championship test cricket is a huge advantage for a format under pressure of time and space on a crowded schedule,” said Chappell. “Test cricket has always been the pinnacle for him and it has led him to be fitter and stronger to meet its demands. That is why he pushes his team forward in these areas because he wants India to be respected in the most demanding format.
“If the captain of India is ambivalent towards test cricket, some managers would be happy to see him slide into disgrace as they are seduced by the newer and brighter models,” he said without restriction in reference to the T20. Cricket.
On Kohli’s position in world cricket, Chappell said the hitting master is aware of that, but is not obsessed with it.
“Winning matches for India is much more important to him and he sees it as his main goal… he is aware of his status in the game and how he can impact others.
“His response to the Indian supporters who booed Steve Smith at The Oval during the 2019 World Cup was enlightening and encouraging. The cheeky young man had transformed into a high-level statesman.
Chappell called Kohli the most powerful player in world cricket at this time. Steve Smith and Kane Williamson compete with Kohli for the mantle of the best hitter of his time. Smith has a statistically useful advantage, but he would be a brave expert to split them up.
Kohli, however, is the most important in the context of world cricket.
“Kohli is tremendously influential. It is also under the most pressure. It cannot be underestimated how difficult it must be to go out to bat with the hopes, aspirations and mood of a billion people, taking advantage of every single one of their performances. ”While he understood the reason behind Kohli’s departure after the First test, Chappell also called his absence from the rest of the series a “disgraceful”.
“While completely understandable, it is a shame for this contest that Kohli is going home for the birth of her first child after the Adelaide Test,” Chappell wrote.
“Kohli is an intensely motivated man. He will want his team to reiterate his supremacy, and I expect something exceptional from him before he leaves, “he said.
(with PTI inputs)
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