“When he’s up, he’s up” : Australian legend Glenn McGrath believes they are the favorites, but have to keep an eye out on Virat Kohli

Coming out from an embarrassing 3-0 whitewash against South Africa, India will face another fierce challenge as they head to Australia for a five-match Test series. Even before the start of the series, there is worry inside the Indian dressing room as a few key players are injured, which includes Shubman Gill while skipper Rohit Sharma is also on the exit ramp.

The Indians have not had the best of luck playing in Australia historically, as the home side has won 14 out of the 27 matches, while 7 of them have ended in a draw. Although, India has won the previous two test series held in Australia, and are eying for a hat-trick.

Legendary Australian fast bowler Glenn McGrath views high chances of his side’s victory in this series, even though Australia has underperformed in the Border-Gavaskar trophy since the past few years.

“Without a doubt, especially after coming off a 3-0 loss against New Zealand, you’ve got plenty of ammunition to back yourself up, so put the pressure on them and see if they’re up for it,” said McGrath on CODE Sports.

“I think he’s quite an emotional player” : Glenn McGrath’s assessment on Virat Kohli form

It has not been Kohli’s best year when it comes to producing unreal numbers with his bat like he used to, showing a few glimpses of it here and there, and that has been a major thorn and concern for the team’s plans. But McGrath believes this series could be the turning point in his year and Australia should not take him for granted.

“If they go hard at him, if he gets in the fight with emotions, there’s a bit of chat out there, who knows he might sort of lift,” said McGrath.

“But I think he’s probably under pressure a little bit, and if he has a couple of low scores to start with, he could feel it. I think he’s quite an emotional player. When he’s up, he’s up, and when he’s down, he sort of struggles a little bit,” the 54-year-old added.

The Australian is not wrong, as in the past we have seen how sheer emotions have outplayed even the worst kinds of situations Virat Kohli was put in. While Kohli’s form may have become unpredictable in his last years, one thing everyone knows is that they can back him up at any given scenario. His antics against Pakistan at the 2022 T20 World Cup come to mind.

If we look past his recent scoring records, the Indian batsman has performed relatively well against Australia, that too across all formats of the game. As for the four Australian tours he has been a part of, he has averaged 54.08, which is well, more than ideal. India will certainly look to rely on the skills of the 36-year-old veteran whenever the going gets tough, as Virat Kohli will never not be a key player, regardless of his form.