Paine on Kohli ahead of first Test: The Australian captain believes his fast bowlers can trouble his counterpart in the Test series.
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With the first Test just three days away from now, strong impact-generating verbals have already started to come out in the media.
Australia captain Tim Paine has expressed confidence at his fast bowlers having it in them to ‘trouble’ India captain Virat Kohli during the imminent Test series staring from December 6 at Adelaide.
There is no hiding to the fact that the hosts will be desperately looking to find ways to counter Kohli for he can be the deciding factor of the series. Given India’s dependence on him, restricting Kohli in the series will leave a deep and hitting impact on the visitors.
“I think our fast bowling attack if they play purely on skill, they’re going to trouble him. At times when we get too emotional, we can lose our way a little bit. So it’s a really fine line. There’s going to be times when they’re going to get a bit fiery, I’m sure. But we need to be mindful of keeping ourselves calm enough so we can execute our skills as well,” Paine was quoted as saying in an interview to cricket.com.au.
With a lot been recently said by former Australian cricketers and Paine himself regarding the Australian team being (or not being) ‘nice’ in the upcoming series, Paine laid emphasis on playing in a way which suits his team. “It’s just about picking your time and picking your moment and doing what the team requires,” he said.
“I think it’s important that guys play the way that suits them. If you’re someone who likes to get into a contest one-on-one with someone like Virat, then go for your life. But I don’t think it needs to be over the top and I don’t think guys who aren’t normally like that need to start doing it,” he further said.
Read some of the latest Twitter reactions on Paine below:
