A look at Virat Kohli's batting record on Australian soil

India will be playing their final limited-overs series of 2018 starting November 21 and it will a three-match T20I series against Australia. The first match will be played at the Gabba, Brisbane, while the second and third matches will be played in Melbourne and Sydney on November 23 and 25, respectively. This is the second time that India are playing a bilateral T20I series in Australia featuring three matches and they won the previous one played in 2016 by a margin of 3-0.

As in every other series that India play, all eyes will be on the side’s captain Virat Kohli. The ace batsman, who is having a tremendous run in 2018 and recently completed 10,000 runs in ODIs as the fastest batsman, didn’t play in the previous T20I series against the Windies at home. Kohli is now back to the helm and will strive for yet another overseas series victory in T20Is (after South Africa and England) this year.

Kohli’s performance in T20Is in Australia

Looking at Kohli’s performance in T20Is in Australia, he has played five of his games versus Australia Down Under and scored 252 runs in them at a startling average of 84 and strike-rate of 149.11 which is much higher than his overall T20I average of 48.88 and strike-rate of 136.22.

His highest score in T20Is in Australia is 90 not out (in Adelaide in 2016) which is his overall highest in this format and has hit three fifties in the five games he played against the Kangaroos in their den and got two Man of the Match awards. Kohli was also the man of the series in the 3-0 victory that India earned under Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s captaincy in 2016, India’s biggest victory in any format in a bilateral series Down Under.

Overall, Kohli has played 11 T20I matches against Australia, accumulating 423 runs at an average of 60 plus and strike-rate of 144.36. He has overall four fifties against Australia in this format. India haven’t played a T20I against any other side on the Australian soil so far.

Kohli has done better than Rohit Sharma in T20Is in Australia

India’s most successful batsman in T20Is Rohit Sharma has been pale in comparison to Kohli on Australian soil. He has played six matches there scoring 151 runs at an average of 30.20 and strike rate of 132-plus with two fifties with the highest score of 60.

Kohli’s performance in Tests in Australia

After the three T20Is, India will take on Australia in a four-Test series starting in Adelaide on December 6. The next three Tests will be played in Perth (Dec 14-18), Melbourne (Dec 26-30) and Sydney (Jan 3-7, 2019). Kohli also has an enviable batting record in Australia in the longer format.

Five of Kohli’s six Test hundreds against Aus have come Down Under

The 30-year-old batsman has played eight Tests in Australia so far starting in 2011-12 and in these eight matches and 16 innings, he has scored 992 runs at an average of 62 which is higher than his overall average of 54 plus. His strike rate in Tests in Australia is also higher (59 plus) than his overall (58 plus). He has slammed five centuries in Australia in Tests with the highest score of 169 (Melbourne, 2014) besides two half-centuries. His 116 scored in Adelaide (his first Test century) in the 2011-12 series which India lost 0-4 is considered by many as the one that transformed Kohli from a boy into a man in his game.

Overall, he has played 15 matches against Australia and scored 1,322 runs at an average of 50.84 with a total of six hundreds and three fifties. In India, Kohli averages only 33 against Australia in seven matches and 11 innings.

A comparison with Sachin Tendulkar in Test figures in Australia

Former maestro Sachin Tendulkar scored 1,809 runs in 20 Test matches that he played in Australia between 1991-92 and 2011-12 and he averaged 53.20 and ended up with six hundreds and seven fifties with the highest score of 241 not out in Sydney in the 2003-04 series. Tendulkar, overall, played 39 Tests against Australia and scored 3,630 runs at an average of 55 with 11 hundreds and 16 fifties.

Kohli’s batting in ODIs in Australia

India will be playing three ODIs against Australia in the concluding part of the series between January 12 and 18 in Sydney, Adelaide and Melbourne. Kohli has played 23 ODIs in Australia so far that include matches of the 2015 World Cup and scored 1,001 runs at an average of 50.05 and a strike rate of 89.21. Kohli has scored four hundreds in Australia and also four fifties with the highest being 133 not out (against Sri Lanka in Hobart in 2012). His overall average in 216 ODI games is almost 60 with 38 hundreds and 48 fifties.

Out of 23 ODIs in Australia, Kohli has played 12 against Australia and scored 476 runs in them at an average of over 43 and strike rate of 88.80. He has scored two tons against Australia with the highest of 117 (in Melbourne, 2016) besides two fifties.

Overall against Australia, Kohli has played 28 games and scored 1,182 runs at an average of 51-plus and strike rate of 94.71. He has five hundreds (highest 118) and five fifties in ODIs against the same opponents.

Comparison with Sachin Tendulkar

Tendulkar, in contrast, played 47 ODI matches in Australia (including those in the 1992 World Cup) scoring 1,491 runs at an average of 34.67. He, however, has scored just one ODI hundred in Australia besides 10 fifties. Against Australia in Australia, Tendulkar played 25 matches in total scoring 740 runs at an average of 30.83. He scored one hundred and five fifty against Australia in Australia. Overall, Tendulkar played 77 ODI games against Australia scoring 3,077 runs at an average of over 44. He scored nine hundreds and 15 fifties against Australia with the highest score of 175.

Rohit Sharma has done better than Kohli in Australia and also against Australia

A comparison of Kohli with Rohit, India’s another prolific scorer in the 50-over format also becomes essential. Sharma has played 27 ODIs in Australia since 2008, scoring 1,143 runs at an average of almost 52 and strike rate of 90 plus. He has scored four hundreds and four fifties on Australian soil with the highest score being 171 not out.

Rohit has played 16 ODIs against Australia in Australia and scored 805 runs at an average of 57.50 and strike rate of over 90. He has scored three hundreds and two half-centuries against the Aussies in Australia with the highest score being 171 not out. Overall, Rohit has played 28 ODIs against Australia scoring 1,593 runs at an average of 66.37 and strike rate of almost 98. His highest ODI score against the Kangaroos is 209 and he has overall six hundreds and five fifties against them.

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