Virat Kohli Is A Special Player, Has Serious Talent And Is Part Of This ‘New’ India: Allan Border

Indian captain Virat Kohli will return to the national colours on the forthcoming tour of Australia where the tourists will play all the formats. Nevertheless, Virat Kohli’s absence from the last three Tests will leave a gaping hole in the Indian side that they will have a challenge filling. Former Australian captain Allan Border has been impressed with the way the 32-year old has captained India.

Virat Kohli will lead the side in the three ODIs and the following as many T20Is before the Test series gets underway. The right-handed batsman is slated to return home for the pink-ball Test in Adelaide for the impending birth of his first child. It would indeed leave the likes of Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteswhar Pujara take up massive responsibilities in tackling Australia’s bowling attack. Kohli’s aggressive captaincy was also one of the reasons that India recorded their first Test series victory in Australia in 2018-19.

Allan Border quipped that he would love to see Virat Kohli playing for Australia and be privileged to play alongside him. The World Cup-winning captain loves Kohli’s passion, aggression, and the will to win – all of which the visitors will miss once he leaves. Border believes that it is through Virat that India plays with a positive mindset and revealed himself as the Delhi cricketer’s big fan.

“I would love to be in a cricket team with Virat. If he wants to come and play for Australia, he is more than welcome. We were thinking he might think about having his newborn baby here because we can claim his offspring as Australian. Look, I love the way he plays his game; he wears his heart on his sleeve. I like his aggression and passion for the game. India as a team will miss that. He is a special player, has serious talent and is part of this ‘new’ India – that’s the way I look at it. The way India play the modern game, they have a very positive mindset, and Virat has led the way very well in those areas. I am a big fan,” Border said as quoted by The Hindu.

Virat Kohli is right up there in the top echelon of Indian cricketers: Allan Border

The 65-year old counted Virat Kohli as one of those few cricketers alongside Steve Smith, AB De Villiers, and David Warner, who has done well in all three formats. Unlike his era, when they only played red-ball cricket and the conventional gameplay, Kohli adapts well. Since it’s not easy to change one’s gameplan, the New South Wales cricketer rates Virat amongst the top-notch Indian cricketers.

“I like the way he can change his game between different formats. I think, if you go back in time when I was playing against someone like Sunil Gavaskar, we just had to bring only one type of game to the table. We were brought up to play long-form cricket. If you look at Virat, he has done equally well in T20s, ODIs and Tests. There are a few of those who do it well around the world – Steve Smith, David Warner and AB de Villiers. That’s why I rate Virat so highly, because it’s not easy to chop and change your game plan. So, for me, he is right up there in the top echelon of Indian cricketers,” he added.

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