Virat Kohli's battles with the Australian stars, with the bat and with words, have been a central part of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy since his first Test series against them in 2011/12. With Kohli turning 36 and struggling for form in Test cricket, the upcoming tour of Australia could be the last time he is seen in whites in the country and players in the host side have noted how the Indian superstar has dialed down the aggression over the years.

Batter Marnus Labuschagne has said that the Australians would still be wary of letting Kohli get too comfortable in the middle. “You want him to come out of his comfort zone and try to force the game. When he lets the game come to him, he is a very dangerous player,” Labuschagne is quoted as saying by cricket.com.au.

Wicketkeeper Alex Carey recalled that there were no jibes coming from Kohli throughout Australia's 2023 tour of India for the BGT. "Playing them in India ... there was nothing," Carey said. "(We didn't) get under his skin, and he didn't try to get under ours. He just performed well with the bat." Veteran opener Usman Khawaja also noted that Kohli's aggression on the field has gone down in recent years. "It's a very different Virat now, so you can go and have a joke with him … (but) he still scores runs against you," Khawaja told cricket.com.au.

Kohli looking to rekindle form in familiar territory

Kohli was consistently averaging above 55 ever year in Tests between 2016 and 2019. In fact, he averaged more than 75 in 2016 and 2017 and 68.00 in 2019. However, his annual Test average has crossed 50 just once in the years since. Kohli averaged 19.33 in 2020, 28.21 in 2021, 26.50 in 2022, 55.91 last year and 22.72 thus far this year. He has scored just two centuries in the last five years, both of which came in 2023.

Kohli's lack of form and manner of dismissals have been among the central talking points during and since India's historic whitewash at the hands of New Zealand at home earlier this month. However, he would be hoping to return to form in Australia where he has an incredible record. He has scored 1,352 runs in 13 matches at an average of 54.08, including six centuries and another four fifties in his 25 innings.

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