Expect the unexpected, says India skipper Kohli

Tuesday, 9 December 2014 00:30 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Reuters: Virat Kohli is determined to make his mark as captain of India, if only for one test as regular skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni recovers from a thumb injury on the sidelines.

Kohli, long regarded heir apparent to 33-year-old Dhoni, confirmed he would lead India into the first test against Australia in Adelaide starting on Tuesday and wasted little time in differentiating himself from the under-pressure wicketkeeper. “I am personally going to go with whatever my gut feel is,” Kohli told reporters at Adelaide Oval on Monday. “I’m going to set fields according to what I feel. “So you might see things quite different from what you usually see. I’m someone who usually goes with what I feel, so it might look funny - but as long as it’s effective. “The intent is going to be aggressive and that’s something that I play my cricket with and that’s certainly something I’m going to try and use in my captaincy as well.” A steely-eyed batsman, the Delhi-born 26-year-old wears heart on his sleeve and presents a stark contrast to the more measured Dhoni, whose outwardly tranquil nature has been seen by Indian pundits as a both a blessing and a curse in pressure situations. After India crumbled to a 3-1 series loss in England, Dhoni’s captaincy is under the microscope in Australia, where his team were whitewashed 4-0 on the last tour in 2011-12. India have never won a test series in Australia but Kohli proved in his rookie season in the side that he had the temperament to thrive on the fast and bouncy wickets Down Under, scoring 75 on a ferocious WACA deck in Perth followed by a defiant 116 in Adelaide. Kohli also found himself on the wrong side of fans on that tour and was fined for making an offensive hand gesture at them at the Sydney Cricket Ground. “I don’t mind a fight. I don’t mind a bit of chat on the field. A bit of banter. I don’t mind all that,” said Kohli, who is likely to be targeted by Australia’s rowdier supporters. “It probably makes me more determined. I’m pretty focused all the time, but that’s an added spice that I like. Last time around I enjoyed it.

Clarke fit to face India in Adelaide Reuters: Australia captain Michael Clarke is fit to lead the side into the first test against India on Tuesday and his return is a “huge boost” for the hosts, fast bowler Mitchell Johnson said. Clarke has been struggling physically with a hamstring injury and emotionally in the aftermath of friend and former team mate Phillip Hughes’s death, which caused the opening test to be postponed and moved from Brisbane.

“It’s a huge boost to have him back in and playing for us,” Johnson told reporters at Adelaide Oval on Monday. “He has been working really hard out there. I’ve got no worries (about him) at all. “He’s said he’s 100% fit and you go by that. He’s always been a hard worker. You’ve got to put trust in him.” Clarke had been in a race to be fit after suffering his third hamstring strain in three months during the one-day series against South Africa. His rehabilitation was disrupted by the tragic death of Hughes as he devoted virtually all his time to be at the batsman’s bedside during his two-day fight for life in a Sydney hospital. Clarke also stayed in Hughes’s hometown of Macksville, New South Wales, for a day after the funeral to be with his Hughes’s family for the cremation. Prior to Hughes’s death, the struggling skipper was at loggerheads with team selectors over how to prove his fitness for the first test of the four-match series. After the tragedy, Clarke drew huge public support as he swallowed his grief to take a lead role in supporting Hughes’s family and stunned team mates. “I think with his captaincy, he’s shown how strong he’s been over the last couple of weeks with the tragedy that we’ve had,” Johnson said. “It has been an emotional roller-coaster and how strong he has been as a person to stand up and do what he’s done. “I’ve definitely seen a different side to him. “He has just grown as a captain and as a person.” Johnson said uncapped paceman Josh Hazlewood and reserve batsman Shaun Marsh would not play, leaving Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle to join with the ICC Cricketer of the Year in the pace attack. Team: Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin, Ryan Harris, Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Chris Rogers, Peter Siddle, Steve Smith, David Warner, Shane Watson.

“It was too aggressive for me initially... but after a few incidents I figured out there’s no other way of playing in Australia, so I’ll just be myself.”

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