Australia's David Warner names two players who can captain India in Virat Kohli’s absence

While others have said that India skipper Virat Kohli's absence from the final three Tests will be deeply felt, Australia's opener David Warner thinks that India already has other players who are fit for the captaincy role.

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Australia were handed a huge boost when it was announced that Indian skipper Virat Kohli will be returning home after the first Test at Adelaide – having been granted paternity leave for the birth of his first child.

The decision by the BCCI to grant Kohli this paternity leave sparked a huge debate with some saying that his absence wouldn’t make a huge difference while others said that this would create a big hole in the Indian batting order.

Now, Australia’s star opener David Warner has given his opinions about the same. Warner said that India had 3-4 players for the leadership role in Test matches – who could captain the side at any point of time.

In a virtual conference, Warner talked about Indian vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane and how he was very different in his temperament as compared to kohli

“...it’s like chalk and cheese with them two (Kohli and Rahane) and as a player to try and engage him on the field, as we’re talking about engaging, and getting into that contest as players, it’s obviously lots to think about how to do that especially with Ajinkya as captain,” he added.

Warner emphasised the difference between the two, which he said was like chalk and cheese. While one (Kohli) is very aggressive  on the field, the other (Rahane) was much more cool and calm.

“He’s calm and very measured in his approach. He’s got a very good cricket brain,” Warner was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

“The great thing from India’s perspective is that you’ve got three if not four very good players who could captain the team at any time. With him, he’ll bring a calm and measured approach with his nature,” Warner further said.

Earlier, former Australian captain Ricky Ponting had also given his views about Kohli’s absence from the final three Tests, where he raised question marks about who will replace Kohli at the number four spot.

India is slated to play three ODI’s, three T20I’s and four Tests down under and would look to repeat their heroics from their last tour. The tour begins with the ODI series, commencing on November 27. The first Test is scheduled for Adelaide from December 17.

India had defeated Australia 2-1 during their previous tour in 2018-19 but it must be noted that their star players, Steve Smith and David Warner, were not playing that series - serving an year-long ban for the infamous ball tampering incident.