Mitchell Starc hails ‘fantastic thinker’ Gambhir ahead of BGT; admits enjoying battles with Virat Kohli

The excitement for the forthcoming Border-Gavaskar series is growing with each passing day, with the fans eagerly waiting for some mouth-watering contests. Though Rishabh Pant and Jasprit Bumrah are two names everyone’s been talking about, there is one battle that fans are secretly awaiting, the one between Virat Kohli and Mitchell Starc. Besides, Starc’s IPL team’s former mentor, Gautam Gambhir, whom he calls a ‘fantastic thinker’, will also be present in the Indian dressing room, spicing things up. 

From being on-field foes to friends and teammates at the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL, Starc and Kohli have come a long way. The two fierce competitors have perhaps crossed their peaks but remain forces to reckon with, especially in Tests.

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Ahead of the marquee five-match series, Starc opened up on his battles with the India great, saying he has always enjoyed them and looks forward to more this time. 

“I enjoy my battles with Virat Kohli; it's because we've played a lot of cricket against one another. I always have some good battles. I've managed to get him out once or twice, and he's no doubt scored a fair few runs against me, so it's always a good contest and one we both enjoy," Starc said on Star Sports.

Starc hails great game thinker Gambhir

Having played under the mentorship of now-India coach Gambhir at Kolkata Knight Riders this season, where they won the trophy for the third time, Starc knows Gautam’s mettle as a coach, remaining cautious of what an already dangerous-looking Indian Team can do under him.

“Speaking from my experience at Kolkata, he is a fantastic thinker of the game. He's always thinking about the opponent and how to get them out as a bowling attack or how to score runs as a batting unit," Starc said of Gautam Gambhir. 

"It's not just individual players, it's always about the team focus and how to get on top of little things that he might see in techniques or in a field placement or anything like that. The nine weeks that I spent with him were fantastic. In a T20 setup, I know that he's got some good things," Starc continued. 

Meanwhile, Starc has returned to Australia’s ODI team for the Pakistan series starting November 4 in Melbourne. Starc will also feature in one Sheffield Shield game on October 25 to prepare for the home summer but might remain away from the Pakistan T20Is to stay fit for the India series.

On the other hand, Virat will feature in India’s home Test series against New Zealand beginning on Wednesday (Oct 16). 

(With inputs from agencies)