The former India skipper Mohammad Azharuddin has heaped praises on Virat Kohli, whom he has called as a mentally strong and talented player,

“Kohli is focused, mentally strong, maintains good fitness level and talented. All these elements are then backed by some good performances which make a lethal combo for the opposition,” he said.

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Azhar was talking in context to India’s recent success in Sri Lanka, where Kohli just did not perform with the bat, but also led India to a complete win over the hosts, with the visitors winning all the nine games on tour. There were situations when team India found itself in some tricky situations, but players did well and help the side to turn the forces, so as prevent an upset.

Kohli though was again the mainstay of the team, as he broke oodles of records on tour. He also equalled Ricky Ponting’s record of 30 ODI century and will soon break it.

However, Azhar pressed on the fact that a good player is one who scores runs in tough situations against a quality swing bowling line-up,

“I don’t know all that. As long as you are playing and performing for the country, it is okay. But I feel the real test for this team will come when India travels away from home. These days even England produces flat wickets. But the main challenge will be for any good batsmen to score against quality swing bowling. You have to play the waiting game then,” he added.

IND vs AUS 2017: Virat Kohli is a Mentally Strong Player - Mohammad Azharuddin 1 — (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)

As of now, India is all set for a long home season where the Virat Kohli-led side will play limited-over series against Australia and New Zealand, followed by a full fledged series against Sri Lanka again. Following that, they will travel to South Africa, where the team would undergo a strenuous test.

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The difficult times will not end there, as India will also travel England an Australia late that year, which will test abilities of players in tough situations. Should Kohli perform there, he would be hailed as one of the best players ever to play the game, whereas, a disappointing run would surely invite criticism.

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