Tim Paine has said that Australia wil 'play it by ear' with Virat Kohli
Australia captain Tim Paine said that his side will have a go at Virat Kohli if there is a requirement during the four-match Test series against India.
There has been a lot of talk about playing good and nice cricket and a change in team culture of the Australian team after the ball-tampering scandal involving Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft.
Paine time and again has said time again that they want to focus on their skills than running their mouth. Coach Justin Langer has also stressed on the importance of not only being competitive on field but also be elite in values.
Kohli, who likes having a go at the opposition and is an agressive captain usually has also been asked about it and sledging during the series but he has maintained that he wants to stay clear of on-field confrontations until and unless it is absolutely necessary.
And, on Sunday, Paine said that his team will not shy away from having a go at Kohli if there is a need but they will pick their moments carefully.
"He's certainly someone who, from what I've seen, enjoys getting into that sort of stuff," Paine told cricket.com.au of Kohli.
"We'll just play it by ear; if there's a time when we think we need to have a word with him, I'm sure we will. If there's other times when we feel like we're bowling well against him and are troubling him, then you don't have to do it.
"It's just about picking your time and picking your moment and doing what the team requires," he added.
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He went on to add that a one-on-one contest with Kohli if fine as long as it is under control.
"I think it's important that guys play the way that suits them. If you're someone who likes to get into a contest one-on-one with someone like Virat, then go for your life," he said.
"But I don't think it needs to be over the top and I don't think guys who aren't normally like that need to start doing it.
Paine, who urged his seamers to not get too "emotional" during the four-Test series starting at Adelaide on December 6, also believes that they have enough firepower in their pace department to trouble Kohli.
"I think our fast bowling attack if they play purely on skill, they're going to trouble him," Paine said.
"At times when we get too emotional, we can lose our way a little bit. So it's a really fine line.
"There's going to be times when they're going to get a bit fiery, I'm sure. But we need to be mindful of keeping ourselves calm enough so we can execute our skills as well," he added
