'He loves to play against Australia' - Sanjay Bangar expects impactful Border Gavaskar Trophy for Virat Kohli

The Border Gavaskar Trophy is just a few days away and all eyes are on former Indian skipper Virat Kohli, who has struggled for runs in the longest format of the game in the last couple of years. However, former Indian cricketer Sanjay Bangar expects Kohli to fire on all cylinders in the upcoming series, which commences on February 9.

With crucial WTC points on offer in the upcoming Test series, both India and Australia will be looking to assert their dominance in the longest format of the game. While all the talk has been around the nature of the pitches in the sub-continent, it is the Indian batting ace Virat Kohli who can make all the difference in the four-match series.

Kohli, who never shies away from a challenge, boasts of a healthy average against the Aussies with 1682 runs and seven centuries against the No.1 ranked Test side. Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Bangar reckoned that the 34-year-old will be up for it in the upcoming series and will raise his game since he loves to play against the formidable opponents.

"He loves to play against Australia. He loves to have that banter against the Australian players and he raises his game, and Test cricket is a format that brings the best out of Virat Kohli as well. Yes, the last two-and-a-half years haven't been as productive by his standards.

"So he would want to continue the freshness of approach that he has enjoyed in the T20 and ODI formats and now he would look to transform that into Test cricket as well. So he is going to make a big bang and create an impact in this series as well," Bangar said during an interaction on Star Sports.

He has already made great strides in overcoming the lean patch: Bangar

The former Indian skipper ended his century drought in white-ball cricket against Afghanistan in the group stage of the Men's T20 World Cup, 2022 and currently seems to have rediscovered his old self. However, his last century in the longest format of the game came in 2019 against Bangladesh, and he will be hoping to end his lean run in red-ball cricket in the decisive upcoming series. Bangar hopes that Kohli gets his form back in Test cricket and wins the series for India against Australia.

"All the indications are in that direction because he has already made great strides in overcoming the lean patch, whatever lean patch you may have to call because of the level of cricket that he has played. Virat Kohli finding back his Test cricket form and winning the series for Team India. I think that's the headline I want to hear at the end of the series," he added.

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