‘Can go and joke with him’ - Usman Khawaja explains Virat Kohli’s personality transformation

Young Virat Kohli was known for scoring plenty of runs on any surface and for his ruthless aggression. He wasn’t shy to flick a finger at the Australian crowd and also talked the talk with the players on the field, such as David Warner and Mitchell Johnson during the previous tour down under. The Australian team understood early that sledging Kohli brings out the best in him and, for the same reason, the banter has stopped to a large extent in recent times.

Kohli is also extremely popular in Australia right now. He was an instant enemy after that ‘middle finger’ incident, but now, he is the cover photo of many leading newspapers in the country. Meanwhile, this could be Kohli’s last trip Down Under. The Australian media understands that and is leaving no stones unturned to pay a tribute off the field. 

Senior Australia batter Usman Khawaja in the meantime, opened up about Kohli’s personality transformation over the years. He highlighted that the cricketer was very different when he was young but now, the Australian players can walk to him and have a joke.

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“It's a very different Virat now, so you can go and have a joke with him … (but) he still scores runs against you,” Khawaja told cricket.com.au.

Kohli isn't someone I have riled up or tried to rile up: Mitchell Starc

Ace pacer Mitchell Starc opened up about his experience of playing with and against Kohli. He highlighted his time playing under the former India captain in RCB and added that he always enjoyed the battle against the Delhi-born.

“I got to play alongside Virat for a couple of years in the IPL, so I got to know him off the field a bit and I have always enjoyed the battles together. So he's not someone I have riled up or tried to rile up. You just have to try and let the cricket do the talking,” Starc said.