Kohli was, “little over the top” in South Africa, but still growing: Steve Waugh

Monaco: Australian legend Steve Waugh felt that Indian skipper Virat Kohli’s aggression was a, “little over the top” in South Africa but it’s all a part of the growth as a leader.

India’s 58-day sojourn of South Africa didn’t begin on a high as they lost the Test series 2-1, but the captain inspired his team to a dominant 5-1 win in the ODIs. The men in blue ended the tour on a high, outplaying the hosts 2-1 in the three-match T20I series.

One of the biggest positives from the series was Kohli’s form with the bat, which kept on getting better with every game. The right-hander muscled his way to a mammoth 558 runs in the ODI series and had earlier batted well in the Tests too.

“I have seen him in South Africa and I feel that he was little over the top. But that’s a learning thing for a captain,” said Waugh, on the sidelines of the Laureus World Sports Awards.

Waugh also said that not all players in the Indian team are as expressive as Kohli is and that is where the skipper needed to strike a balance.

“As a captain, he (Kohli) is still developing and needs some time to pull in his excitement factor and emotions but that’s the way he plays,” Waugh opined.

“I think he just needs to get a bit aware that everyone in the side can’t play in that fashion. Someone like (Ajinkya) Rahane and (Cheteshwar) Pujara are very calm and quiet guys so he needs to just understand that some players are different.

He added further, “At times he probably needs to tone his aggression down and at times he needs to lift it, so he needs to work it out what’s right.”

Nonetheless, the former Australian skipper had words of praise for the 29-year-old.

“He (Kohli) is leading very well right now. He has that charisma and that X-factor and so he wants all the rest of the team to follow him. He wants the team to play positively all the time and win as quickly as he can,” Waugh said.

“They have got a very good win record in the last couple of years in all forms of the game. Virat has high aspirations from his team. He wants to be no.1 across all formats which is difficult to do these days.”

Kohli’s Indian team would now have their focus on performing well in England and Australia-two of the biggest challenges for the men in blue this year.

The number one Test side would play a five-match Test series against England in August and September this year and would go on to tour Australia in the summer of 2018-2019 for a four-Test series.

Waugh also said that Kohli’s performance would be crucial for India’s success in Australia.

“Australia will be favourites in Australia because we have got such a great record, just like India in India. Virat (Kohli) would obviously be the key in Australia. He played amazing in Australia last time.

“India are a very confident young side and they are playing with great confidence and passion that their captain believes in. They believe they can win in Australia no doubt,” he added.

He also said India would have a good chance of performing well because of the pitches, which would be more familiar to them this time.

“To be fair, the pitches will suit India more than the past because the pitches are very benign at the moment,” said Waugh.

“So they will definitely suit the Indian batsmen and the spinners will come into action more. So I think it would be a very competitive series.”

Despite the Test series loss, Kohli and co have managed to retain the Test mace but Waugh felt that there isn’t much difference between the top three sides-India, South Africa and Australia.

“They are a very competitive side, they cover all positions well. So, I think India, South Africa and Australia are right now three sides who are very similar in quality and they will fight it out for the No.1 position in the next couple of years,” he said.

Waugh also had his say on MS Dhoni, believing that the wicket-keeper batsman still has it in him to carry on till the World Cup next year.

“He (Dhoni) is still a great player but he needs to have that energy and that spark which right now, he does have. But 12 months is still long, long away.

“He is definitely good enough but sometimes when you get a bit older you don’t prepare as well as you have done before but right now it looks like he is doing that. He is keen, he is a great leader and he is a winner,” Waugh signed off saying.

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