Australia's tour of India is almost two months away and talks have already surfaced about the highly anticipated four-match Test series. Australia captain Steve Smith seems to have targeted his opposite number Virat Kohli and ruffle his feathers to make India vulnerable in the series.
India have been a terrific side under the leadership of Kohli in the longer format of the game. India, after defeating England in the fifth Test match of the series, have taken their unbeaten streak to 18 matches, which is a new landmark in Indian cricket. There is a huge sense of belief and confidence among the current bunch of players, helping them exceed against any opposition.
Kohli has been in the thick of things with the bat in his hand and even without it, he is leading the team from the front with passion and raw emotion on the field. Kohli is someone who wears his heart on his sleeve, and cricketers around the world have understood that aggression and emotion are part of his game.
In the last tour of Australia too, Kohli showed his fiery character in the Test series, leading to some healthy sledging on the field as well. Smith knows about his emotional side and wants to take advantage of that and make him angry with the hope that India falls into the trap.
"He is a very emotional character out on the field, but I think he has improved a lot there. I guess for us as a team it's trying to get him out of the strong emotional state and try and make him, I guess, a little bit angry and ruffle his feathers and things like that. I think if you can get him in that state then the Indian team can possibly be a little bit vulnerable," Smith said on ABC Grandstand.
It was during the last tour of Australia when MS Dhoni decided to retire from Test cricket midway in the series, and Kohli began his captaincy journey. Since the last tour of Australia, Kohli has changed and there is some sort of controlled aggression and he plays his cricket in a matured manner.
"He is a world-class player and he has, obviously, led the Indian team incredibly well over the last 18 months or so. They have won a lot of games in that time and I think they have played a lot of cricket at home in that time as well. I think he has improved a lot body-language wise," Smith said.
India and Australia have always been huge rivals on the cricket field and one can expect some sledging and tempers flying in the four-match Test series.
