Australian players cannot behave like ‘pussycats’ against India, asserts Kim Hughes

Australia are in desperate need for a win but the in-form Indians will pose a challenge for the home team as the two gear up for the upcoming series which is scheduled to begin on November 21. The team, led by Aaron Finch and Tim Paine, will definitely miss the services of Steve Smith and David Warner who are currently serving a one-year ban from Cricket Australia for their respective roles in the ball-tampering incident earlier this year.

But former Australian captain Kim Hughes claimed that the home side can’t afford to behave like ‘pussycats’ as they go up against a formidable side led by the in-form Virat Kohli. Hughes added that the Aussies will need to up the ante in order to pull off a win against the high-flying Indian team who are fresh off a home series win against West Indies. 

"You are not going to become pussycats. That's not racially vilifying him (Kohli) at all or anything like that but just a good stare, or a couple of words, that's part of the Australian way. Most blokes' nicknames are usually when you have a stuff-up, not when you have a had a glorious moment," Hughes was quoted as saying by the Sydney Morning Herald.

Hughes also spoke about the threat that Kohli posed ahead of the series opener in Brisbane on Wednesday. The Aussie added that the 30-year old Indian certainly falls amongst the top three cricketers in the world at the moment, if not first.

"If he (Kohli) is not the best player in the world, he is in the final two or three ... I think he is the best player in the world. When you have 1.2 billion people in the world supporting you and expecting you to do well, there is a fair bit of pressure. He is the type of player that you would feel as an opposition that you could get under his skin.

"Some are just unflappable, it doesn't seem to matter what happens to them, like a Clive Lloyd - nothing seemed to faze him. Where a Kohli, you just get the feeling that if things didn't go well, and you could keep the pressure on him, he might chuck the toys out of the cart. I saw him get a run-out once and he was blowing kisses, this sort of stuff. Therefore, and I think the other thing, the Indian players all gain a tremendous amount of faith and belief in him. That's why, if you can, you can really get into him, more mentally. The real challenge for him is to stay calm, don't get too emotional," Hughes added.