India are set to take on Australia in a full-fledged series starting later this month. The two heavyweights of the cricketing world will lock horns in three One Day internationals, three T20Is and fours Tests. However, team India will be without their skipper Virat Kohli for the final three games in the longest format as the cricketer will travel back to India to attend the birth of his first child with actress Anushka Sharma. Australia vs India Test Series 2020: With Virat Kohli’s Absence, Team India Have a Big Hole to Fill.

Virat Kohli has been granted paternity leave by BCCI, which means he won’t be a part of the latter part of the tour but former cricketer Allan Border in a recent interview jokingly stated that the Indian skipper’s kid should have been born on Australian soil so that the country can claim of him being an Australian. India vs Australia 2020–21: Ravi Shastri Shares Pictures With Hardik Pandya, Shikhar Dhawan, Says ‘Great to Get Back to Business’.

‘We were hoping his baby would be born in Australia so that we can claim him or her to be an Australian!,’ said the former Australian skipper during an interview with ABC. The 65-year-old heaped further praise on Virat Kohli, stating that it is upto players like him to keep Test cricket alive in a world where franchise cricket is taking over.

‘He [Kohli] is an antagonist and plays aggressively. It is up to players like Kohli and teams like India, England and Australia to keep Test cricket alive from the growing threat of franchise cricket,’ Border said further.

Allan Border further added that Virat Kohli’s absence could play in Australia’s favour as they can win the Test series. ‘The one thing that is in Australia’s favour is Virat Kohli playing only the first Test. I think that is a big ‘out’ for India. He is irreplaceable at the moment as a batsman and a leader. Should be 2-1 to Australia,’ the 65-year-old said.

Team India have already reached Australia and after the squad’s coronavirus tests, have begun team training. The first ODI game of the series will be held on November 27 with the T20I games kicking off in early December. The first of the four Tests will be played on December 17.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 21, 2020 12:34 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).