‘Virat has got an Australian mentality’ - Brett Lee on India great ahead of BGT 2024-25

The Indian team is gearing up for the much anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. The side will take on Australia in the five-game series, with the first Test kicking off on November 22 in Perth. Ahead of the series, there have been many discussions over the form of several senior players.

The centre of discussion is the ace batter Virat Kohli. The veteran has been out of touch for several games now, and ahead of the BGT 2024-25, having scored only 250 runs in Tests this year, many are questioning his form. However, the former Australia cricketer Brett Lee took centre stage and talked about how Kohli could come into his own in the series and backed the star batter to perform. 

“He’s got an Australian mentality, a never-say-die attitude. He doesn’t mind getting into a scrap. He doesn’t mind having a crack. There has been a lot of conjecture around his form recently, but I’m not worried about that. I know with Kohli, he’s got the experience underneath his belt,” Lee told FoxCricket. 

“He may have only got 90 runs in the three-test series against the Kiwis, but who cares? When he comes out here, he has a great record in Australia,” Lee added.

He is a superstar: Brett Lee

Furthermore, Brett Lee talked about how, despite the discussions around Kohli’s form, the ace batter will be raring to go against the Aussies. He compared facing Kohli to that of the time when Lee bowled against Sachin Tendulkar back in the day. 

"There has been a lot of speculation and conjecture around Kohli's form, and I can promise you that when he gets out here, he will be raring to go, because he is a superstar," Lee said. 

"It is an old cliche where you don't want to try to play against the name. You try to treat him, with all due respect, as (another) batsman. And it was the same when I was bowling against Sachin Tendulkar. You can get overawed by the stature of the guy and the history and what he has achieved, but the thing with Kohli is that he loves to get into a scrap,” he concluded.