Australian spin legend Nathan Lyon has shared an interesting story about his battles with Virat Kohli during the 2014 Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) series. Lyon recalled the Adelaide Test where Kohli smashed twin centuries in his Test captaincy debut and made the spinner one of his prime targets.

Nathan Lyon shares ‘Roger Federer’ story about Virat Kohli

Nathan Lyon revealed that during the game, Virat Kohli would often come down the pitch and say “Federer” as he faced his deliveries. When Lyon asked Kohli what he meant, the Indian batter replied that he had a “beautiful forehand” like the tennis legend Roger Federer.

Nathan Lyon was left baffled by Virat Kohli’s comments, jokingly asking if they were playing the wrong sport. Despite the lighthearted exchange, Lyon acknowledged Kohli’s impressive batting skills, calling him a “decent player.”

“The battle that comes to me is the 2014 Test at Adelaide Oval where he got the 100s in both innings. I was bowling to him and he was batting that easily. He would come down to non-striker and just say ‘Federer’. And I was like, okay, what is this and he kept doing it, kept doing it. Every time. Every time he would come down and he was like, ‘Federer, Federer,” Lyon told cricket.com.au.

“And I said, mate, ‘I do not know if I am wrong, but we are playing the wrong sport If you think you are Federer’. And he goes, nah, nah, I got a beautiful forehand’. I was just like, ‘okay, you are a decent player, if you can just sit there and do that mid-innings,” Lyon added.

Both Nathan Lyon and Virat Kohli will feature in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy, the first match of which is scheduled to take place at the Perth Stadium from November 22 onwards. Kohli has not been in decent form lately and will look to bounce back in the series opener. This could well be Kohli’s last Test series in Australia, his favourite hunting ground.  

Also Read: ‘Virat Knows…’: Sanjay Manjrekar Sends Warning To Struggling Kohli Ahead Of Border-Gavaskar Trophy