India are scheduled to play four Tests against Australia with the first Test starting from December 3 at Gabba, Brisbane. While all are waiting for the Down Under, Aussie batsman Matthew Wade said that he would not be indulging in any verbal conversations with India captain Virat Kohli.
Wade, who has used sharp words to get into the skin of his opponents in the past, said not just the skipper, but he won’t indulge with the rest of the Indian team as well as it might spur them on.
Talking about this comment, former India batting legend Rahul Dravid said that Wade won’t be sledging Kohli as it would not be in Australia’s best interests. The ‘Wall’ explained that Kohli is already a competitive and aggressive player and any remarks would only make him more of his usual self.
“He sort of lives for it, he loves the fight, he loves the contest. He’s pretty competitive and aggressive as it is. You don’t want to get him more aggressive, I don’t know how more he can get,” Dravid said on ‘Sony Ten Pit stop’ show aired on the channel’s Facebook page.
The batting legend, however, stated that any verbal confrontations won’t matter as cricket is a game of skill. “In the end, a lot of this stuff does not really affect players. In the end, it’s a contest. They know they have to be at the top of their games. The skills have to be top class. They want to compete against someone like Virat,” he said.
“Virat also knows he has to be at top of the game if he wants to perform against the likes of Cummins, Starc, Pattinson, Hazlewood – that’s a pretty good attack. He knows that as well,” he added.
Dravid also stated that the team that performs consistently relying on their skills will come out on top. “So, it’s not about words, it’ about the skills. It’s a skills game. The players will be looking to rely on his skills, and who can perform consistently over a long period of time in a Test match, and the team who does that will triumph.
“I think Wade is trying to say that they are going to focus on that skill – and if they get that right, then they can cause him a problem. If they get it slightly wrong, then we know what Virat could do,” Dravid further said.
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