Former Australian cricketer Geoff Lawson said that star India batter Virat Kohli will receive mixed reactions but speedster Jasprit Bumrah may enjoy a more welcome during the upcoming Border Gavaskar Trophy. However, India and Australia will play against each other in five Tests in a highly anticipated series, starting in Perth on November 22.
Meanwhile, Kohli has been in the thick of things with the Australian crowd since his first tour way back in 2011-12. But Bumrah has played only the last two Test series in Australia, both won by India as well.
Previewing the upcoming series, Lawson told Mid-Day: “Virat Kohli will play the faux villain to Jasprit Bumrah’s likeable nature. Bumrah has the fast bowlers privilege of [spending] half a life at fine leg which gives him the ideal chance to interact with the crowd, winning smiles and hearts while Kohli will lurk in the infield appealing vociferously, fielding magnificently and engaging verbally with any Australian player so inclined to conversation, and there will be one or two of those.”
“Aussie crowds love a competitor like Kohli, they may give him some grief if he plays the antagonist but you can guarantee that if he makes 50s and 100s he will be loudly applauded by the fans. He has shown a liking for Australian conditions ever since his first tour 13 years ago. Bounce and pace suited his two-footed game but the question in 2024 is whether he still has the razor sharpness to best Australia’s attack on their home surfaces. I wouldn’t count him out,” further stated Lawson.
However, Virat Kohli boasts a great Test record in Australia, scoring 1,352 runs at an average of 54.08 with six centuries in 13 outings as well. Geoff Lawson also said that Australia will go all out to ensure the Border Gavaskar Trophy returns home for the first time since 2014-15 as well.
“Pat Cummins may smile a lot but his competitiveness is ingrained and powerful. Having hinted at a never-faltering mindset, some Australian players have been quoted as having unfinished business. The Border-Gavaskar Trophy has been loaned to the BCCI for a decade, it’s time to get it back on the trophy shelves in Jolimont [Cricket Australia’s headquarters in Victoria]. Australia may hold the World Test Championship but without a home series win against India, the crown sits unsteadily,” concluded Geoff Lawson.
