INDIA vice-captain Shreyas Iyer lavished praise on Virat Kohli, saying the batting great has been “walking the talk” for years, the latest being his masterclass in a successful run chase against New Zealand in the ODI series opener. Kohli struck a fluent 93 off 91 balls as India chased down a target of 301 to register a four-wicket win and take a 1-0 lead in the three-match rubber here on Sunday.

 

“Whatever we talk about his innings, it would be less. We have been seeing it for so many years now he’s been doing it consistently. The way he rotates the strike and he takes on the bowlers, he basically walks the talk,” Iyer said. Iyer, who returned to international action after a long injury lay-off following a spleen laceration with internal bleeding sustained during the third ODI against Australia in Sydney in October last year, said he was delighted to begin the series on a winning note.

 

“Great start to the series. Coming back after a while into the team, it feels great to be a part of this squad. More than that, it was a great feeling to share the dressing room with each and every one. I was missing it for quite a while, but I am happy to be back,” Iyer said. Jamieson marvels superstar Kohli’s craft HAVING been a rival as well as a team-mate to Virat Kohli, New Zealand all-rounder Kyle Jamieson says he can only marvel at the Indian superstar’s craft as he operates at a “different level”, one where great batters have their way even if bowlers try to contain them.

 

Jamieson, who has shared the dressing room with Kohli at Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL, said it’s tough to determine if the Indian batter has been at his best right now. “It’s hard to say from an opposition point of view whether this is the best version of him or not -- he’s been pretty good for a long time, right?,” Jamieson told the media after Sunday’s loss.

 

“You feel every time you come up against him, you’ve got to be at your absolute best to even compete. He’s on a different level, he plays the game on a different level to most cricketers, (and) he looked pretty good for the most part. We’ll just have to try and come up with some plans to try and contain him, but (then) you don’t contain the greats.”