Ahead of the mouth-watering ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final between India and Australia, batting superstar Virat Kohli has opened up on the rivalry between the two teams.
India and Australia will be resuming their celebrated Test rivalry this week when they take on each other in the WTC final, scheduled to begin from Wednesday (June 7) at the Oval in London. Very few rivalries in cricket have been as intense as the India-Australia rivalry in the last couple of decades or so. Both the teams bring the best out of each other and it makes up for stunning spectacle on the cricket field.
In recent years, India and Australia have given the cricket world some absolute classics on the field and will be keen to do so again when they lock horns against each other in the WTC final. Australia and India qualified for the WTC final after finishing the second cycle of the competition as the top-two ranked sides.
Virat Kohli on India-Australia rivalry:
Speaking ahead of the highly-anticipated clash between the two countries, Virat Kohli talked about the rivalry. The batting superstar mentioned that while the rivalry used to be very intense earlier, it has turned into respect after India’s historic triumphs in Australia in the 2018/19 and 2020/21 Test series. He stated that the wins have made the opposition respect India more.
“The rivalry between India and Australia, in the early days, used to be a lot intense. There used to be a tense environment. But after we won 2 series in Australia, the rivalry has turned into respect. We can’t be taken lightly as a Test team. We can see the respect the oppositions have for us. They expect us to give a close fight even in their conditions. We can’t be taken lightly anymore,” Virat Kohli said.
“There used to be tension in the air in the past. But that’s not there now. You have your presence now, there’s standing on level terms now,” he added.
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