"He will want to make this series count" - Sourav Ganguly confident of Virat Kohli's success against Australia in Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly is confident of Virat Kohli's success in Australia during the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy despite his struggles in the home series against Bangladesh and New Zealand. Ganguly asserted the No. 4 batter has an excellent record in Australia and will enjoy the pitches Down Under.
Kohli registered a highest score of 47 from four innings during the two-match Test series against Bangladesh. In the three Tests that followed against the Kiwis, he managed only one half-century in six innings. In the second and third Test, the right-hander scored 1 & 17 and 4 & 1, respectively.
In an interview with Revsportz, Ganguly threw his weight behind the former India captain and backed him to come up with big scores in Australia. He said:
"Absolutely, he is a champion batter. And he has had success in Australia in the past. He scored four hundreds in 2014, scored a hundred in 2018 as well. He will want to make this series count, and he will also know this could be the last time he is touring Australia to play Test cricket. So, in every sense, this is a massive series for Kohli.
"I don’t want to read too much into the New Zealand series. The pitches did not allow good batting. In Australia, he will enjoy the conditions. There will be good pitches. I am backing Virat to deliver in Australia in this series," the 52-year-old went on to add.
Ganguly went on to describe dynamic keeper-batter Rishabh Pant as India's next-best red-ball batter after Kohli. The former left-handed batter believes that Pant could have a huge role to play in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
"His special ability. He still needs to evolve in white-ball cricket. But in red ball, he is just fantastic. Look at the innings he has played in England, Australia and South Africa, and you will know he is a generational talent in red-ball cricket. He is India’s next-best red-ball batter after Kohli, and could have a huge impact in the series," Ganguly commented.
India will begin their 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy campaign at the Optus Stadium in Perth, where the first Test will get underway on Friday, November 22.
Kohli and Pant's record in Test matches in Australia
Kohli has played 13 Tests in Australia, scoring 1,352 runs at an average of 54.08, with six hundreds and four fifties. His best of 169 came in Melbourne in December 2014. The 36-year-old hit tons in both innings in Adelaide during the same tour.
Pant has featured in seven Tests Down Under, scoring 624 runs at an average of 62.40, with one hundred and two fifties. The 27-year-old struck 159* in Sydney in January 2019 and scored an iconic 89* at The Gabba in January 2021.