Kohli challenging to play against, can get under your skin: Tim Paine
May 16, 2021
Melbourne [Australia], May 16 : Australia Test skipper Tim Paine has said that Virat Kohli has the ability to get under the skin of opposition and this makes him a challenging player to play against.
Kohli and Paine were seen involved in a heated battle during the 2018-19 series and both of them famously had a showdown during the Perth Test. Earlier this year, India had defeated Australia, but Kohli had missed the last three Tests as he along with wife Anushka Sharma was expecting the birth of their first child.
"For Virat Kohli, I have said many times, he seems like the type of player you would love to have in your team. He is competitive. He is the best batsman in the world," Paine said while speaking on the Gilly and Goss podcast.
"Kohli is challenging to play against and he can get under your skin because he is so good and he is so competitive. But yeah, for me from where I came from, sharing a feud with him four years ago, He is certainly someone I will always remember," he added.
Earlier, Paine had clarified that he did not try to make up any excuses for the series loss against India earlier this year. Paine had indicated that Australia was distracted by Team India during the tour which eventually saw the hosts losing the Test series in January this year.
"I was asked a number of things, and one of those was talking about the challenges of playing against India. One of them is the distraction they can create," Paine said.
"There was a lot of talk that they weren't going to Brisbane. They're always changing gloves and bringing out physios and all that can get on your nerves. Just said that was one of the things that probably distracted me and took my eye off the ball at times," he added.
The Australian skipper reiterated that he "was not making excuses" when he said the visitors created "sideshows".
"But also, I did say that they simply outplayed us and that they deserved to win but they left that one out. The Indian fans have been slamming me on social media. They say that I am making excuses again but it is all good fun," said Paine.
India defeated Australia by three wickets against all odds in the final Test of the four-match series at The Gabba in January to take the series 2-1.
The last time a visiting team came out triumphant from the Brisbane Cricket Ground was back in November 1988 when the mighty West Indian outfit under the leadership of Viv Richards thrashed Allan Border's team by nine wickets.
