India vs Australia 2019: Matthew Hayden Hails Virat Kohli's Tempo, Says he Plays Out of Skin

Former Australia cricketer Matthew Hayden has shared high praise on the Indian National Cricket team skipper Virat Kohli following his century against Australia during the third ODI at the JSCA International Stadium Complex at Ranchi. Despite valiant efforts from the India skipper, the home side fell short of 32 runs as the visitors pulled one back in the series.

Kohli – the greatest ever?

Chasing a massive target of 314 runs, Kohli played a classical knock of 123 from 95 balls – his back-to-back century against Australia – to keep India in the hunt before Adam Zampa bowled him at a crucial juncture. Once he was out, India chances faded away as they finished 32 runs short at Ranchi. During his knock, Virat Kohli added yet another feather to his illustrious cap. The talismanic runscorer became only the fourth Indian captain ever to score 4000 runs in ODIs. Virat Kohli joined the elite list which already has big names of MS Dhoni (6641), Mohammad Azharuddin (5239) and Sourav Ganguly (5104) ahead of him. In the process, Kohli (63 innings) also surpassed South African superstar AB de Villiers (77 innings) to become the fastest player to score 4000 ODI runs as captain.

Known for hitting the ball hard, Matthew Hayden termed Virat Kohli’s run-scoring spree as staggering and hailed the tempo in which he gets those runs. The former Australia opener tracked back to the history of cricket to admit Kohli is setting a different benchmark altogether.

“Absolutely staggering. I am trying to think back, check the memory banks of brilliant players over the years. Maybe Brian Lara in his heyday, Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly all these players have been on top of their game at various points in one-day cricket.

But Virat Kohli is doing it so easy. He is drifting away to a hundred. Not only that, just the way he is transcending every game seems to be a different performance,” Hayden told Star Sports after Australia’s win on Friday.

Kohli’s tempo unmatched to other

In conclusion, Matthew Hayden praised Virat Kohli’s tempo and the intent to score runs. He also added that his one innings lead to another and he continues it fantastically. The southpaw also noted that someone like Vijay Shankar would draw confidence from here and it will be an advantage for India in the World Cup.

“I think he has always got the great energy and the intent and he’s got the fitness to be able to do it. It’s almost like one performance leads to the next. His tempo is incredible,” Hayden concluded.

Meanwhile, the Indian National Cricket team with only two matches to go to the World Cup will make a few changes going into the next game. The management has already announced the MS Dhoni will not feature in the last two ODI which gives Rishabh Pant one final opportunity to showcase his skills ahead of the showpiece event.