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Former England spinner Graeme Swann opened up and praised Virat Kohli’s fighting spirit that was on showcase during the 2012 tour. England toured India in 2012 for a five-match Test series and beat the hosts 2-1. The English spinners Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar emerged as the stars for their side, having recorded 20 and 17 wickets to their names. Ahead of England’s 2024 tour to the Indian subcontinent, the former English spinner recalled the notable victory of his side.
In the final match of the series, England handed the maiden Test cap to Joe Root, who went on to shine in his debut match, by posting 73 in the first innings. On India's side, Kohli scored 103 and MS Dhoni contributed 99 runs to get close to the 330-run total posted by their counterparts. Reminiscing the game, Swann said that England players were told not to mess with Virat Kohli during the entire series after Steven Finn got into verbal arguments with him.
Emphasising the Indian batter’s fighting spirit, Swann said in a SkySports podcast, “We had been told beforehand to not say anything to this bloke [Virat Kohli]. Steven Finn got driven for a couple of incredible fours and he lost the plot had a got at him and realised his mistake straight away. Virat roared up like a tiger and Finn just doubled down and got smashed everywhere.”
The upcoming tour between India and England will begin on January 25 in Hyderabad, where the guests will once again aim for the 2012-like win. The series-concluding game is slated to be played from March 7 to March 11 at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala. In the upcoming series, untested spinners Shoaib Bashir and Tom Hartley will be up against legends like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
