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Team India's Virat Kohli recently opened up on his childhood friend Ishant Sharma's cricketing career. He mentioned that the first thing that comes to mind about the veteran pacer's journey in international cricket is his iconic spell to former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting at Perth in 2008.
A 19-year-old Ishant grabbed headlines with his terrific spell to Ponting at the WACA. He troubled the ace batter with his tidy line and length and was able to claim his wicket in both innings.
Talking of the fast bowlers who have made a significant impact for Team India in this generation, he noted how left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan had a successful run in Test and ODI cricket.
Kohli made these comments during a chat with Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir. The video of the conversation was shared by the BCCI on its website on Wednesday, September 18. He said from (10:05):
"If you look at the generation of bowlers we've just had, when you talk about Ishant Sharma, the first thing that comes to mind is the spell at Perth, you know, Ricky Ponting, as a youngster. If you talk about his cricket career, Ishant Sharma, 100-plus Test matches for India. Zaheer Khan, these many wickets for India in Test cricket and a great 50-over World Cup."
Virat Kohli also opined that Mohammed Shami isn't considered a top-class bowler on the basis of his exploits in T20 cricket. He suggested that speedster has got recognition because of his performance in the longer formats, adding (from 10:27):
"Mohammed Shami is not a world-renowned bowler because he is a great T20 bowler. He is one of the best Test bowlers in the world, and what he did in the 50-over World Cup adds value."
The 35-year-old highlighted how Mohammed Siraj is also focused on proving his mettle in red-ball cricket and winning Test matches, especially in away conditions, elaborating (from 11:04):
"The USP of Siraj today is he wants to play Test cricket and he is hungry to do well in Test cricket and wants to win away from home. These are the values that other cricketers can look up to."
Virat Kohli is set to make a return to Test cricket after nine months. He will be seen in action in India's upcoming Test series opener against Bangladesh in Chennai, beginning Thursday, September 19.
"The most complete all-format bowler" - Virat Kohli on Jasprit Bumrah
In the aforementioned video, Virat Kohli hailed India's pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah as the most complete all-format bowler. He reckoned that the seamer hasn't got the tag solely because of his deadly yorkers in T20 cricket.
Emphasizing that success in Test and ODI cricket helps a player earn respect from his peers and fans, Virat Kohli remarked (from 10:36):
"When you speak about Bumrah, we don't talk about his T20 yorkers. Yesterday, we were talking about this, he is the most complete all-format bowler. So, when you bring in the value of a cricketer, you cannot place that value separating the other two formats. If you really want to be valued as a cricketer, which I guess we all want to understand, our respect that we gain in the cricket world or with our peers, it's always going to come with the other longer formats as well."
Bumrah was one of the key architects in India's 2024 T20 World Cup victory. He was adjudged the Player of the Tournament, bagging 15 wickets from eight outings at an economy rate of 4.17.
