Virat Kohli and Sam Konstas clashed during the Boxing Day Test.© X (formerly Twitter)
Former Australian cricketer Aaron Finch said that star India batter Virat Kohli is trying to “pick up a fight” and is “trying to be antagonistic” because that is when he plays at his best and puts all his skills on the show. Virat has been a constant fixture in the media during this Border-Gavaskar Trophy, both due to his poor performances with the bat, which have seen him score just 167 runs across four Tests at an average of 27.83 with just a century to his name, and his physical altercation with young Aussie batter Sam Konstas, which cost the veteran his 20 per cent match fee and invited the anger of Australian media.
Speaking on ESPN’s Around the Wicket podcast, Finch said, “Virat is someone who has always thrived on pressure and he has thrived when his back is against the wall. It just feels like at this stage, he is trying to put his own back against the wall. He is trying to be antagonistic, he is trying to almost pick a fight because that is when he plays when he feels like someone’s coming at him. That is when he puts all his skills on show.”
“It just feels like he is pushing other people to make him feel like that and we have not seen the best of him in this series yet. He looked beautiful in the first innings at Melbourne and looked like he was not going to get out but Australia have bowled well,” he added.
This year, Virat has scored 417 runs at an average of just 24.52, with barely one century and fifty in 19 innings. His best score is 100*.
The decade of 2020s has been a difficult one for Virat the Test batter. In 38 Tests since the start of this decade, Virat has made 2,005 runs at an average of 31.32, with just three centuries and nine fifties to his name and best score of 186.
In the ongoing ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 cycle, Virat has made 728 runs in 23 innings in 13 Tests at an average of 34.66, with two tons and three fifties in 23 innings and best score of 121.
However, in this series, Virat will get one more chance at redeeming himself in the fifth and final Test at Sydney, starting from January 3 onwards.
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