Virat Kohli vs Steve Smith: India-Australia rivalry resumes under two natural leaders

Pune: The India-Australia rivalry is set to enter a new dimension, with Virat Kohli and Steve Smith about to lead their teams in the four match Test series in India.

Having already seen a few great rivalries between the captains of the two sides, over the history of the sport – Mohammad Azharuddin vs Mark Taylor, Sourav Ganguly vs Steve Waugh, and Mahendra Singh Dhoni vs Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke.

However, apart from under Ganguly, India have mostly been sitting ducks in overseas tours.

The Indo-Australian rivalry reached its peak when Steve Waugh (L) and Sourav Ganguly (R) were the captains of the two sides in the early 2000s. (Photo: AFP)

Now we are set to see two new captains, both at the peak of their respective careers, gearing up to take a good go at each other.

With regards to their career trajectories, both Kohli and Smith can be viewed as the two modern-day Mercedes cars in Formula One. They are the best batsmen in Test cricket right now, and anyone else is just too far behind them to offer any substantial competition; at least on the points table for batsmen in Test cricket.

What makes the rivalry even more intriguing is the approach that both of them take, while leading their teams out onto the pitch. Australia have always been known to be an aggressive side, even in Test cricket.

Their general philosophy of batting in the sub-continent – play your shots and score the big runs before the destiny-signed ball gets you out – reeks of aggression.

We have already seen a bit of a preview of what these two captains can conjure-up, when pitted against each-other.

2014/15 Border-Gavaskar Trophy: A mere trailer of things to come

The 2014/15 Border-Gavaskar Trophy was billed as a game of chess between Dhoni and Clarke. However, injuries to both the captains meant that Kohli and Smith got a good look into what it takes to lead their countries in Test cricket.

Kohli, who skippered the side in the first Test in place of an injured Dhoni, already showed the aggressive style that he has to offer. India needed 363 runs to win with a little more than a day left in the Adelaide Test, went for the victory instead of playing-out a draw.

Kohli himself led the charge and scored 141 in the fourth innings of the Test. India eventually lost the match, but gave the Aussies a real scare.

Virat Kohli ascended the Test throne after MS Dhoni quit the longer format of the game in 2014. (Photo: AFP)

Smith also showed great leadership qualities, helping the aggressive Aussies win the second Test, and wrap-up the series 2-0 after a draw in the third Test in Melbourne.

Smith and Kohli were finally pitted against each other (as captains) in the fourth Test in Sydney. While this Test also ended in a stalemate, it gave us all a look into what these two young leaders had to offer.

Leaders from the front

While the India-Australia rivalry has offered a lot, it has hardly been the case that the two captains have been the key players on the pitch. The likes of Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Sachin Tendulkar, and Harbhajan Singh have been key players for the Indians, while greats like Matthew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist, Shane Warne, and Glenn McGrath have been the prime performers for the Aussies.

This time however, both the sides will look up to their respective charismatic captains. Of course, no team can win on the back of just one man’s performance, and there are a few key members in both the sides – Ravichandran Ashwin and Ajinkya Rahane (India), and David Warner and Mitchell Stark (Australia).

However, there is no doubting the fact that Smith and Kohli are the two prime batsmen in their respective lineups.

Smith has shown a great penchant for captaincy over the couple of years after the 2014/15 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The 27-year-old already has a brilliant average of 60.15 in Test cricket.

However, it is his penchant of leading the side from the front that has earned him the world no. 1 tag in Test cricket. He averages 73.73 as a Test captain.

Steve Smith may have started out as a leg-spinner, but he now leads the Aussies from the front, with an amazing average of 73.73 as the captain. (Photo: AFP)

Kohli on the other hand, has been at his mesmerising best this home season, scoring 1,215 runs in 2016 at an amazing average of 75.93. He also became the first cricketer to score double tons in four consecutive Test series, surpassing greats like Sir Don Bradman and Rahul Dravid in his wake.

The difference

One thing that makes the upcoming four-Test series between India and Australia is that the hosts start as overwhelming favourites. India have always been strong on their own turf, but the Aussies have always come to the sub-continent full of confidence, giving little away, both in terms of performance and media-talk.

This time however, the Aussies have shown great respect to their counterparts, something that has hardly been seen in the world of cricket. The fact that India are on a 19-match unbeaten run in Test cricket, does not bode well for the visitors.

To add to that, Australia themselves are in more of a re-building phase, with new faces like Peter Handscomb, Matt Renshaw, Mitchell Swepson, and Ashton Agar being phased into the Test squad.

The 3-0 whitewash that they suffered in Sri Lanka and the 2-1 loss at home against South Africa have invigorated the Aussies to bring about a major shake-up in their team.

While they did whitewash Pakistan 3-0 at home, after this major re-building, their side, on paper, still looks a unconvincing against an Indian team that is in its destructive best, and knows its best XI in home conditions.

It would be interesting to see how the relatively inexperienced Aussies fare against the Indians, who are on a rampage under an aggressive Kohli.