Aus skipper says Virat one of the greatest
MOHALI: A day after Aussie Test skipper Pat Cummins' show of confidence in Virat Kohli's abilities, Cummins' T20 counterpart Aaron Finch went one step ahead, showering praises on the former India captain. Finch said whatever Kohli had achieved in the last 15 years was just "ridiculous" and it would take "a very brave man" to write off the batting star.
Finch, who had shared the dressing room with Kohli in the Royal Challengers Bangalore franchise, has no hesitation in terming the Delhi batter one of the "greatest players of all time".
Kohli recently ended a three-year century drought by smashing an unbeaten 122 against Afghanistan side in an inconsequential Asia Cup match, and India will be hoping he will be back at his best in the upcoming World Cup.
"It will be a very brave man to write off Virat Kohli. At any stage, he has shown for 15 years now that he is one of the greatest players of all time. Particularly in T20 cricket, he's someone who has developed and grown his game over such a long period that you always plan and prepare the best when you're coming up against him," Finch said in a virtual interaction ahead of the first T20I against India here on Tuesday. "He is super and has 71 international centuries. That's just ridiculous," the Aussie skipper added.
The 35-year-old Finch, who guided Australia to the T20 World Cup title last year, retired from One-day Internationals after a prolonged slump in form. Set to lead the Kangaroos in their title defence in their own backyard, all eyes will be on Finch's batting form in this series.
"Over a long period of time, you get pretty comfortable with criticism but in T20 cricket, I feel my form has been really good for quite a while now. I think if you separate the ODI form and the T20 form, then they're totally different, they're two different formats of the game. So we're just really excited to be here and kick off this three-game series," he said in his defence. Acknowledging the importance of innovation in T20 cricket, Finch, who along with Tim David and Matthew Wade were seen fine-tuning their skills at scoop shots during practice, said it was important for any player to keep upgrading himself to stay ahead of the competition.
"We've seen over the last 10 years how much the game has developed. You as a player have to keep looking for ways to improve and ways to stay ahead of the competition, or just ways to improvise to provide you with some more options out on the field," he said. Commenting on the team combination for Tuesday's contest, Finch revealed that Steve Smith was expected to bat at No. 3 in place of the injured Mitchell Marsh, but did not confirm whether T20 specialist Tim David would be handed a debut for Australia. David has already played 14 T20Is for Singapore and has a fair idea about Indian pitches, considering his association with IPL teams.
"Most likely he (Smith) will bat at three in this series with Mitch Marsh being out. We know the quality that Steve's got. He's one of the best players that has ever played the game over all formats. So we know the skill that he's got and the game sense and the tactical nous that he's got."
