'Love to hate him', Tim Paine on Virat Kohli
The stakes will be high as India and Australia lock horns in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, following the white-ball leg. Speaking on the same, Australian skipper Tim Paine said he "loves to hate" his counterpart Kohli, however, he still admires the latter's batting. He also spoke on the action-packed rivalry between the two nations. Notably, the four-Test series will commence on December 17.
Here is what Paine said on Kohli
Paine said the Australian contingent loves to see Kohli bat. "With Virat, it is a funny one, we love to hate him but we also love to watch him bat as cricket fans. He certainly is polarising in that type of scenario. We love watching him bat, but we don't like seeing him score too many runs," he said.
He is just another player for me: Paine
"I get asked a log of questions about Kohli, he's just another player to me, it doesn't really bother. There's not really a relationship with him to be fair, I see him at the toss and play against him and that's about it," added Paine.
India made history Down Under in 2018-19
Under Kohli, India became the first Asian side to win a Test series in Australia (2018/19). They clinched the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2-1. India also won the ODI series 2-1, while the T20I series was drawn. Notably, Kohli finished with 282 runs, including a blistering ton in Perth. He would want to replicate the show this time too before he leaves for India.
He will fly back after the first Test
Kohli is all set to lead Team India in the white-ball fixtures. However, he will fly back after taking part in the white-ball fixtures and first Test (Adelaide), to attend the birth of his child. The BCCI had granted him paternity leave for the same. Reportedly, he might not rejoin the Test squad once he returns to India due to quarantine protocols.
Paine talks about the heated rivalry
Over the years, Kohli has always been at the helm in Australia, and taken banters on the chin. "It's a heated competition and he's obviously a competitive person and so am I, so year there were a few occasions when we had words but that wasn't because he was the captain and I was the captain, it could have been anyone," stated Paine.
Kohli can script multiple records on the Australian tour
Kohli's astonishing numbers illustrate his success in Australia. He is the second-highest run-getter from India in international cricket Down Under, having aggregated 2,745 runs, including a record 11 tons. By scoring 255 more, he could become the second Indian after Tendulkar to complete 3,000 international runs in Australia. Also, he requires one more ton to register most centuries by an Indian in the nation.
