While Virat Kohli might have recieved stiff criticism for his onfield aggressive demeanour, Australian sppedster Mitchell Starc has come in support of the Indian skipper and said that the former is “fantastic” to play under.
Kohli and Australia captain Tim Paine were involved in a series of heated exchanges during the ongoing four-match Test series between India and Australia, which at one point prompted umpire Chris Gaffaney to step in to dissolve the tension.The Indian skipper also invited criticism for not acknowledging the standing ovation at Perth Stadium after being dismissed following a sparkling 123 in the first innings of the second Test.
While former pacer Mitchell Johnson described Kohli’s behaviour as “disrespectful” and “silly”, former Indian great Sunil Gavaskar was also highly critical of his captaincy.
However, Starc–who had shared the dressing room with Kohli while being a part of Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League (IPL)–believes the Indian skipper is not only a remarkable batsman but also a good leader.
“I’ve played a couple of IPLs with Virat and he’s been fantastic to play under, as a captain.Obviously, he’s a fantastic player. The way India play this series and go about their cricket, it’s up to them,” cricket.com.au quoted Starc as sayinng.
Earlier, Indian head coach Ravi Shastri had also come in support of Kohli when the question of the captain’s on-field behaviour was raised in media.
Shastri said that he doesn’t understand as to what is wrong with Kohli’s behaviour before dubbing him an “absolute gentleman”.
“Fantastic – why, what’s wrong with his behaviour? People can question; as far as we’re concerned, he’s an absolute gentleman,” the head coach added.
The Test series is currently levelled at 1-1, with India winning the first match by 31 runs at Adelaide Oval before Australia bouncing back to clinch a huge 146-run win in Perth. The two sides will now head into third Test, beginning December 26 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
