Australia vs India 2018: Virat Kohli is the Energy of the Indian Team - Brad Hogg

Former Australia spinner Brad Hogg has labeled Indian National Cricket team skipper Virat Kohli as the energy of the current setup, and his teammates derive energy from him.

Meanwhile, the Indian skipper has come under sharp criticism for his on-field antics and aggressive behaviour. The Perth Test saw some heated exchange between Virat Kohli and Tim Paine to which the umpire had to intervene. Many experts have targeted Kohli for his attitude, but Brad Hogg has defended him saying he is the energy of the side.

“Virat Kohli is the energy of this Indian team. He is their clear leader and they feed off him. You just see him on the field – his athleticism is different and he expects that from the Indian team,” Hogg told PTI.

“And what he expects from the team, he does as well, so it is not as if he is telling the team what to do without leading from the front. He is actually leading from the front and asking his teammates to follow him,” he added.

Virat Kohli is on another level

Speaking about Virat Kohli’s batting, Brad Hogg noted that the talismanic run-scorer is from a different planet. Although Usman Khawaja played a classical Test knock in the second innings, Hogg feels Kohli is on another level.

“As a batsman too, Kohli is on a different level to anyone else. Perhaps only Usman Khawaja came close, that too in the second innings where he batted with a lot of composure,” Hogg said.

“But even then, they don’t have someone on the same level as Kohli. He is a different batsman to everybody else – he finds boundaries and rotates strike, and turns momentum of the game at will,” he added.

With the series tied at 1-1, Bradd Hogg is hopeful for a close contest in the remaining two Test matches.