Don’t think the Australians will be as silly to pick up a fight with Virat Kohli: Michael Clarke

Star batter Virat Kohli played 13 Test matches in Australia, scoring 1352 runs at an average of 54.04. He was always charged up to do well against Australia, especially as the hosts kept chirping things when he was in the middle. Many former cricketers noted that it might have motivated the 36-year-old to do well with the bat as he scored tons of runs after that. Keeping it in mind, Michael Clarke noted that the current batch would not be silly to sledge him or pick up a fight.

Notably, Kohli was phenomenal with the bat in the 2014-15 season against Australia and later, under his leadership, India won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in 2018-19. In the 2020-21 season, he played only one match; now, it could be his last Test series in Australia. Speaking on the same, Clarke stated that he is eager to see the talisman bat in Australia and added that for India to win, the Delhi-born will have to score the maximum runs.

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“I seriously don’t think the Australians will be as silly to do this. That’s exactly what Virat wants. He wants them to get into a fight with him. He will use it to get into the action. You shouldn’t give him that opportunity, and I am sure the Australians know it. He is much loved out here for all that he has done and achieved, and I am waiting to see him bat here. As I said, if India is to do well and win, Virat Kohli will have to score the maximum number of runs for the team,” Clarke told RevSportz.

Kohli loves the fight, mate, and loves getting into the action: Clarke

Clarke believes that if Kohli manages to get runs in the first Test in Perth, he can get going in all four games. He also highlighted that the former India captain loves to fight and get into action and the series against Australia will pump him to do better.

“As an Australian, I’d want Australia to keep him quiet. If he gets runs in the first game, he will get runs all series and will make it count. He loves the fight, mate, and loves getting into the action. See the build-up around him. All of this will pump him up for sure,” Clarke said.