India vs England: Ben Stokes full of admiration for Virat Kohli, but expects more clashes in the future

Ben Stokes is one of those characters, no matter what the situation, you cannot ignore on a cricket field. With that flaming hair and personality, Stokes always seems to be in or near the eye of the storm, whenever it shows up and it is that character that brings out the best in him.

There have been a few run-ins during the India vs England Test series, chief of them being against Virat Kohli, when the England all-rounder ended up being fined for using a few choice words after being dismissed in Mohali.

Knowing just how fired up a character Kohli is on the field, even this much more mature version, Stokes and the India captain were bound to clash, especially considering just how seriously they take their cricket and winning matches for their country. Stokes, though, has no issues with squaring up against Kohli, who has set this series alight with his batting, scoring over 600 runs, including a wonderful double century in the last Test match in Mumbai.

"We're both very competitive people who let our emotions show," Stokes said. "It probably won't be the last time we're both involved in something but I don't hold grudges."

Indeed, Stokes was full of admiration for Kohli, with the India captain leading by example and guiding the home team to a series victory over England.

"He is one of the batsmen of our time and you've just got to hold your hands up to him and appreciate the player that he is," Stokes added.

"I stand at slip to the spinners and the guys who have got runs out here, their footwork has been the biggest thing that has stood out. They very rarely get beaten, playing and missing, with defensive shots. They are either right forward or right back.

"They pick the length and know what to do with it. Even though they have been scoring lots of runs against us, you do look at them and understand why they are being successful."

Being successful is something Stokes is used to now, be that with the bat or ball. He has played some outstanding innings in this series already, while a five-for, on the difficult-for-the-pacers pitches have also come his way.

That just goes to show how important a player he is for England, in all formats, but Stokes insisted, even with the danger of being banned for his over-exuberant personality on the pitch, he is not going to change the manner in which he plays his cricket.

"It's theatre for people who want to see it," Stokes said. "It's part of the game, so I don't see any reason why they should try to clamp down on it so quickly.

"But if it's going to be one rule, it's got to be the same rule for everyone," the Durham man added, alluding to the fact that Kohli's part in that scenario went unpunished, while R Ashwin was also not sanctioned after he exchanged a few words with James Anderson during the fourth Test.

"You can't just be letting certain people get away with certain things and not others. I think that side of the game can be just jumped on and people get slapped with fines and all that stuff. But if you're going to do someone then you've got to do the next person no matter who they are or who they play for."