Virat Kohli counters Greg Chappell, claims his personality 'a representation of new India'

Speaking to members of the press via a video call ahead of the India vs Australia 1st Test, skipper Virat Kohli has branded himself as the "representation of new India". Kohli will be playing his last game of cricket for a while, at Adelaide on Thursday, before he goes back home to be with his wife, Anushka Sharma, for the birth of their first child. In his absence, the captaincy of the team will be handed over to senior Indian batsman Ajinkya Rahane, who has captained India many times previously. 

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India vs Australia 1st Test: Kohli's reply to Greg Chappell

By Kohli's own admission, the only way to earn the respect of the Australian cricketing fan is to beat the Aussies at their own game, in their country. "I have been touring this place for many years now, and it is a wonderful place to play cricket. When you perform well here, you earn the respect of the public" Kohli explained in his interview. It sure seems like Kohli has hit the nail the head with that astute observation, for how else could you get one of the greatest Australian Test players to give you, what would be to them, the ultimate compliment. 

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Speaking about the high compliment of "Kohli is the most Australian non-Australian cricketer of all time" given to him by the former India coach, Greg Chappell, Kohli has said that he prefers to think otherwise. While gracious in his acceptance, Kohli has rejected Chappell's slightly backhanded inference that Kohli's aggressive, powerful style of play is, in its essence, Australian. "I would like to say that I have always been myself. The way my personality and character is, I think it is a representation of the new India. It's not as such in my mind a comparison to me being similar to Australian mindset or anything like that," Kohli told reporters in reply to the comment. 

"For me it's how we have started to stand up as the Indian cricket team. And my personality has always been this way from day one. This for me is a representation of the new India where we want to take on challenges and move forward with optimism and positivity and make sure we are up and ready for any challenges that come our way" the skipper added. 

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India vs Australia live game details

The India vs Australia 1st Test match at Adelaide is already underway. The match can be watched live on TV in India on the Sony Sports network channels, Sony SIX, Sony Ten 3 and Sony Ten 1. The match can also be live streamed on the SonyLIV app and website in India. At the time of writing, on Day 1, session 2, India are 97/2 with Kohli 34* (97) and Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara 40* (152) on the crease. 

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Image Credits: Virat Kohli Twitter