If anyone thought that the acrimonious war of words over the past two months between India and Australia would finally see closure at the end of the series, he/she was wrong.
And Virat Kohli made sure the message went out loud and clear — they were no longer friends, anywhere.
“No, it has changed. I thought that was the case, but it has changed, for sure. As I said, in the heat of the battle you want to be competitive but I’ve been proven wrong.
“The thing I said before the first Test, that has certainly changed and you won’t hear me say that (we are friends) ever again,” Kohli brushed it off.
“Criticism is not in my control. I was targeted individually, and I haven’t done well in this series so opportunities galore for everyone to come out and speak about me, which is fine...very easy to sit at home and write a blog or speak behind a mike.
“ I think that’s easier than coming out and competing in the field,” he remarked, making it clear that there was a difference between criticism and accusations.
The Indian captain, though, was magnanimous in his praise for the opposition, at least on field, in the way it fought back till the very end of the four-match series.
“They challenged us really hard… the resistance from the opposition was a lot more compared to the last few series that we have played. I think they had the belief of making things happen in these conditions.
“They believed they could win sessions and situations and that was the most challenging thing. Whereas teams lose their morale once they lose a Test in India, they kept bouncing back and they had the desire to compete throughout.
“You expect that from Australia, once they get a sniff they put you under pressure,” said Kohli.
“These kinds of series and matches, they build character,” he said.
