Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting praised Virat Kohli for revolutionising Test cricket in India. He added that Kohli’s start of Test captaincy played a massive role in the turnaround of the game in the country. India did well under the captaincy of Kohli, which began in 2014 end and it went on until the start of 2022. He instilled that aggressive brand of cricket within the team and made everyone believe that the Indian team could do well in overseas matches as well. It was under Kohli’s captaincy that India became the first Asian team to win a Test series in Australia as well.

“Their fast-bowling depth is great. The leadership in the last 6-7 years has been strong. Going back to Kohli’s start of captaincy, played a big role in turning the cricket around and Dravid has continued the same in the recent four years. The influence of someone like that [Kohli] around a team would be great and they’ve got star players,” Ponting told Sky Sports.

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However, in Kohli’s tenure, India won 40 matches and lost only 17, with 11 ending in draws out of the 68 Tests they played as well. Notably, his home and away record made him one of India’s most successful captains in Test cricket. However, this time Kohli will tour Australia as a player with Rohit Sharma leading the team. During the last series in 2020-21, Virat Kohli left the series midway after the 1st Test due to the birth of his daughter Vamika. Meanwhile, India, under the captaincy of Ajinkya Rahane, battled all the woes, including injuries and the absence of key players to register a historic 2–1 series win as well.

“They won a game at the Gabba, which just doesn’t happen. I think their batters adapt to overseas batting conditions very well. I don’t think they’re as daunted by the Gabba or the Optus Oval, as they maybe once were. Maybe it is a selection thing, or they just don’t fear the big stage anymore,” Ricky Ponting concluded. “For the last 10 years being around the IPL, I’ve noticed that a lot of the young guys [don’t fear the big stage anymore] as the IPL is high-pressure, it is like a World Cup for them. Their batsmen are all very aggressive stroke-making players. They are not scared of failing.”