'Isko mein itna maarunga iss series mein' - Virat Kohli recalls feisty tussle with Mitchell Johnson

India's tour of Australia to play the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in 2014-2015 was a memorable affair. While the Asian giants lost the four-match series 0-2, Indian fans got themselves arguably their best Test captain of all time. The legendary Virat Kohli took over as India's full-time Test captain after MS Dhoni announced his retirement from the longest format of the game following the third Test.

Kohli captained India in the first Test in a stand-in capacity in the absence of Dhoni. The iconic wicketkeeper-batter, however, returned for the second and third Tests. The final Test saw Kohli leading the Indian team for the first time on a full-time basis. This series is not just special because of the Delhi batter's promotion. His rivalry with fiery Australian pacer Mitchell Johnson throughout the tour kept the fans on the edge of their seats and made them fall in love with red-ball cricket all over again.

Also Read: IPL 2024: Virat Kohli's gesture to stop booing Hardik Pandya at Wankhede wins hearts on internet

The right-handed batter finished as the leading run-getter in the series for India. He amassed 692 runs from four matches at a staggering average of 86.50. Kohli scored centuries in both innings of the first Test in Adelaide before failing in the second in Brisbane. However, he bounced back with one century each in the third and fourth Tests in Melbourne and Sydney respectively. Only Steve Smith (769 runs from four matches) finished with more runs than Kohli in the series.

Also Read: Jaipur's wax museum set to welcome Virat Kohli's statue

In a video that has gone viral on social media, Kohli recalls his intense tussle with then-Aussie spearhead Johnson during the series.

"During the first match of the tour, the very first ball of Johnson hit me on the head. Back then at first, it was complete disbelief. For 60 days I had been visualising that I'd play like this and that, but there was a complete change of plans after that blow. It was a heavy blow and my vision started dropping as my left eye started swelling, but I did not notice it back then," Virat Kohli was heard saying in the viral video.

"And what happened at lunch was that, these are the things I feel thankful for, there were basically two options, fight or flight. And my reaction was obviously one that went, how dare he hit me on the head? Mene kaha isko mein itna maarunga iss series mein (I said I'll smack him around in the series and that is what I did," Kohli revealed.

India are scheduled to travel to Australia to defend the Border-Gavaskar Trophy later this year. Kohli will be looking forward to helping his team retain the coveted title with another strong performance in the country where he averages an impressive 54.08 in Tests.