Kohli promises agression and spontaneity

MS Dhoni's first sighting as a Test captain was in an oversized blazer that belonged to the man he was standing in for, Anil Kumble. There hadn't been a press conference because Kumble wasn't sure if he was going to sit out or play. A bunsen had been rolled out in Kanpur because India had fallen behind in the series, and Dhoni quietly slipped in with a win in his first Test as captain. That's the Dhoni way. Don't promise anything because promises bring pressure. Don't let anyone know what you are up to because that brings scrutiny. Arguably Dhoni's biggest success as captain and player has been keeping pressure and scrutiny away.

Now that Dhoni has reached a stage in his career where his body is making him sit out Tests, his stand-in has a much more difficult task than he had when he started out. This is Australia, India have won only one out of their last 19 away Tests, and their batsmen were all left scarred in England. The 26-year-old Virat Kohli, though, is not shying away from pressure or scrutiny. He is promising aggression - "the only way to play cricket in Australia" - whereas Dhoni believes in waiting for the opponent to make mistakes.

It was here in Australia, over the last two Tests of the previous tour, that Kohli laid himself bare. Before Perth he nearly broke down, asking everybody to give him a fair run. Dhoni was in his corner back then. Given another Test, Kohli scored a hundred in Adelaide. Three years later he is in better control of his emotions, but he doesn't supress them. When asked what impact Phillip Hughes' death has had on the Indian team, Kohli spoke thoughtfully, discussing how it had affected him emotionally, speaking of his personal friendship with Hughes, built during a camp in Brisbane. Yet he was unstinting when it came to the actual cricket.

"I don't think that's even a thing of debate I guess," Kohli said when asked if India were going to bowl bouncers at what can be perceived as emotionally vulnerable Australia batsmen. "It is a part of cricket. It's every bowler's right to utilise it, and it depends on what we have in mind. We'll obviously make use of it in the game. It's there to be used. I don't think we will drift away from our plans. It's still a part of cricket, and you know we're going to stick to the plans we have in mind. We have four bowlers who can bowl quick, all are fully fit right now. It's obviously a great thing to have. Three-four guys bowling 140-plus, may be a couple of them going up to the 150-plus as well. Feels good as a captain."

Kohli went one step ahead, and promised a deviation from the same old. "I am personally going to go with whatever my gut feel is," Kohli said when asked if he was going to set more aggressive fields and if he would be willing to risk a defeat if a win was a possibility. "Whatever I feel. I am going to set fields according to that. So you might see things different from what you usually see. I am someone who goes with what I feel. It might look funny, but as long as it's effective. But the intent is going to be aggressive. That's something that I've played my cricket with, and it's certainly something that I am going to use in my captaincy as well."

Now aggressive fields and taking risks in pursuit of a Test win is not something Dhoni is renowned for, but it is possible Kohli didn't get the undertone in that question.

That he is in Australia has possibly made Kohli more vocal about being aggressive. "I don't mind a fight," he said. "I don't mind a chat on the field, a bit of banter. It probably makes me more determined, I guess. It's not that only that makes me determined. I am pretty focused to do well all the time, but that's the spice that I like. Last time around I enjoyed it. I found it hard to take it for a couple of Tests, but after a couple of incidents I found out there's no other way of playing in Australia. Rather just be myself."

Being aggressive and talking a good game is all right, but Kohli is coming off a Test tour where his technique lay exposed. The bowlers kept bowling to him outside off, and he kept following the balls - neither leaving nor attacking them - repeatedly to get out and score just 134 runs in 10 innings. He sounded bullish about his own personal form.

"It's just another two months in life, nothing bigger than that," Kohli said. "I made the mistake of giving too much importance to things that are not in my control. I don't know why that England phase is still being spoken about. I don't live in yesterday. I don't think anyone does. Most of us don't even remember or want to remember what went on in those sessions or Test matches.

"It's all about looking forward to tomorrow. If you keep sulking with the past there's no way you're going to move on in life. I'm taking this tour as nothing more than two months in my life. If I do well, if I don't do well, I'm still going to be the same guy sitting in front of you. Nothing's going to change."

There is a certain freshness to how India have built up to this Test under Kohli, but it is early doors. It is easy to sound refreshing when doing a one-off Test; routine can suck the life out of the freshest of them. The real test begins now. Captaincy might not begin on the field, but it is tested the most there. Then there will be a small matter of the regular captain sitting on the sidelines. It can be difficult to play in your own individual style at these times. He will have to look after his own form too.

How Kohli, India's 32nd Test captain, goes about the job will have a major bearing on the direction the Test team heads in after the World Cup.