New Delhi. It was the year 2018, after the end of the Perth Test, Team India reached Melbourne on 19th December, where the Boxing Day Test i.e. the third Test match of the series was to be played from 26th December. When Team India got off the bus, almost every player had a smile on their face, but Kohli looked very upset. The then captain Kohli was facing a lot of trouble in Australia for his attitude.
Kohli is again the target of Australian media on this tour of 2024. First Ricky Ponting questioned Kohli’s form, then Aaron Finch questioned Kohli’s place in the team and then the photo controversy with the Australian reporter at the airport. It seems that Virat’s patience ran out and on the first day of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, Kohli pushed and argued with 19-year-old Australian opener Sam Constas, who was playing the debut match.
ICC fined Kohli and match referee Andy Pycroft not only deducted 20% of Kohli’s match fee for bad behavior on the field but also gave him one de-merit point. In this case, Sam Constas who in an interview had described Virat Kohli as his favorite player in the whole world. Sam himself said that we both got carried away with emotions.”
It is obvious that the Australian media went after Virat Kohli and the journalists from countries like Pakistan which were irritated with India also started supporting him. What is even more interesting is that the technique on Kohli is being done by Australian players who themselves have never been known for good behaviour. Ricky Ponting, who gave the most knowledge, once hit the shoulder of 18 year old young Harbhajan Singh after his own dismissal and today he is giving sermon on sportsmanship in Kohli case.
The surprising thing is that some Indians are also joining Ponting’s tune. Virat Kohli’s performance as a batsman is also not up to his level. Virat Kohli himself has admitted that he is not able to perform in a disciplined manner. In an interview given to Fox Sports, Kohli said- The last two-three innings were not as I wanted.
Virat has made and continues to make a great contribution to Indian cricket. There can be debate on whether Virat is a perfect role model for the youth or not, but there is no doubt that he is the biggest model of aspirations of the middle class youth of the new India. The youth who challenges the system at every step. One who knows his goal and is confident in his abilities. If anyone comes in his way, instead of stopping, he will give a befitting reply.
For him, small happiness does not matter and contentment is not a part of his nature. He works much harder than his peers and that hard work sometimes makes him impatient. But he never claimed to be God himself. He never hides his flaws but moves ahead with the help of his strengths.
In the same series in which India won the first Test, when the Indian team moved back towards the pavilion at the end of the last session of the third day, Kohli almost pushed Jaiswal forward to score a big century. As if saying “You lead”. The reality is that runs will be scored, they will never be scored, but Virat’s legacy is special. Don’t compare Virat’s nature with Sachin’s, they are two different people, different personality, different upbringing, different environment, different challenges and different times. Actually aggression is a part of Kohli’s behaviour.
There is no batsman like Kohli in this generation, but he also has the potential to be at the top among “All Time Greats”. But the issue is whether Virat Kohli is a perfect role model? Is their behavior appropriate? Is he a team man? Is their “aggression” intolerable? Do they get into so much trouble that their personality becomes a canker?
Experts say that “Whatever brings you success, stick to it. You should not deviate from your formula for success. It doesn’t matter what others say”. Former Indian fast bowler Praveen Kumar once said, “Kohli has been playing such aggressive cricket since his Under-16 days. If he is showing the same aggression while playing for India, then what is special in it? I have played a lot of cricket with him and I can say that he cannot play his best cricket without aggression”.
Overall, in Virat’s personality you get a glimpse of a fighter who is aggressive, shouts and screams, and gives his life to achieve victory. This attitude is also criticized in the society, but remember that a poet from Virat’s own city, Delhi, had said, “We are not a fan of running in our veins, what is blood when it does not drip from our eyes. “
Tags: cricket news, India vs Australia, Local18, ricky ponting, Virat Kohli
FIRST PUBLISHED: December 27, 2024, 05:45 IST