Australia great Matthew Hayden lavished praise on batting great Virat Kohli ahead of the upcoming three-match ODI series, which is scheduled to start from October 19. Kohli, who announced retirement from Tests and T20Is, is making his international comeback after the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 final against New Zealand.
Virat Kohli is like a Ferrari: Matthew Hayden
The batting great who holds a great record against Australia has started sweating out in nets alongside Rohit Sharma and skipper Shubman Gill. Ahead of the ODI series, Hayden compared Kohli's field presence to Ferrari for his unmatched energy and charisma.
"Virat is high octane, he's a Ferrari. He's full noise, he'll be gesturing to the crowd. You'll have Jiostar that'll be focusing on everything he does on the cricket field. And everything is so big that it's hard not to polarise your views on it because he's so bloody good," Hayden said on All Over Bar The Cricket YouTube channel.
Hayden for Virat Kohli's chances for the ODI World Cup 2027
Hayden further praised Kohli's iconic ODI record and fitness standards and described him as a gold star” for his preparation. He reckons that the modern-day great has his sights set on the 2027 World Cup.
"He has played 302 matches and got 14,000 runs and what about this average in One-day cricket, it's unbelievable. His key is that he is a gold star with his fitness and preparation. In my head, I've got him focusing on 2027 ( World Cup). He wants to be a part of that," Hayden added.
Virat Kohli's ODI performance against Australia
Virat Kohli has played 50 ODIs against Australia, where he amassed 2451 runs with a highest score of 123 runs at an average of 54.46, including eight centuries and 15 half-centuries. The batting maestro played 29 ODIs in Australia, where he scored 1327 runs, including five centuries and six half-centuries. Notably, Kohli needs 54 runs to surpass Kumar Sangakkara (14,234 runs) and become the second-highest run-scorer in ODI cricket history, behind only Sachin Tendulkar (18,426 runs). Kohli currently has 14,181 ODI runs at an average exceeding 57, the highest among batters with more than 10,000 runs.