'We can't be taken lightly anymore': Kohli reveals how India gained Australia's respect

Former captain Virat Kohli has observed a decrease in the intense rivalry between India and Australia in recent years. Kohli pointed out that the rivalry has mellowed down following India's consistent success against Australia in their own backyard, including their historic Test series victories in 2018-19 and 2020-21.

Speaking to Star Sports ahead of the World Test Championship final, Kohli mentioned that he now sees a level of respect from the Australians towards India when the two teams face each other. While acknowledging that there was significant tension in the past during their battles, he believes that the situation has changed.

Kohli led India to their first-ever Test series win in Australia in 2019. In the absence of key Australian players, Steve Smith and David Warner, India capitalized on the opportunities and secured a 2-1 victory in the four-match series. Two years later, India faced adversity with several star players injured but staged an incredible comeback to win the series 2-1, under the captaincy of Ajinkya Rahane.

After we won 2 series in Australia, the rivalry has turned into respect: Virat Kohli

"The rivalry between India and Australia, in the early days, used to be a lot intense. There used to be a tense environment. But after we won 2 series in Australia, the rivalry has turned into respect. We can't be taken lightly as a Test team. We can see the respect the oppositions have for us. They expect us to give a close fight even in their conditions. We can't be taken lightly anymore," Virat Kohli said.

"There used to be tension in the air in the past. But that's not there now. You have your presence now, there's standing on level terms now," he added.

Recently, in an interview with the ICC, Australian players had some nice words to say for Virat Kohli. Aussie stars heaped praise on the 34-year-old for his competitive nature and world-class skills. Kohli will next be seen in action during the WTC final against Australia. The match is scheduled to be played at The Oval in England from June 7 to 11. 

WTC final squads

India’s squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, KS Bharat (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat, Ishan Kishan (wk).

Standby players: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mukesh Kumar, Suryakumar Yadav.

Australia's squad: Pat Cummins (C), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (wk), Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wk), Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Todd Murphy, Steven Smith (vice-capt), Mitchell Starc, David Warner.

Image: AP