India coach Ravi Shastri defends under pressure captain Virat Kohli’s behaviour

India coach Ravi Shastri has jumped to the defence of under pressure captain Virat Kohli after his position was called into question following the loss in Perth, while gun spinner Ravi Ashwin remains in doubt for Boxing Day.

India coach Ravi Shastri has defended captain Virat Kohli.

Indian coach Ravi Shastri has leapt to the defence of polarising captain Virat Kohli as it was revealed the lingering effects of an injection had floored all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja.

Kohli’s on-field actions have come under fire but Shastri was quick to shutdown criticism of his master batsman.

“(He’s) fantastic — what’s wrong with his behaviour?” Shastri quipped.

“People can question, but as far as we are concerned he’s an absolute gentleman.”

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Mitchell Starc refused to defend the Indian skipper on Sunday and there is clear hostility between the camps.

“You’ll have to ask their team (about Kohli’s behaviour),” Starc said.

“What the Indian team want to do and how Virat wants to captain is up to them.”

Shastri said Ravi Ashwin, who missed the Perth Test with an abdominal strain, remained in doubt for Boxing Day.

India coach Ravi Shastri has defended captain Virat Kohli.

The coach revealed that Jadeja had received an injection in his shoulder while in India and another one on arrival in Australia.

“When you’re millions of miles away it’s very easy to fire blanks,” Shastri said when asked why Jadeja did not play in Perth.

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“The problem with Jadeja was he’d taken an injection four days into coming to Australia, because of some stiffness in his shoulder.

“It took a while for that injection to settle down. At Perth we felt he was 70-80 per cent fit, and we didn’t want to risk that in Perth.

“If he is 80 per cent fit here, he will play. That’s the answer.

Spinner Ravi Ashwin is in doubt for the Boxing Day Test.

“He still felt stiff in the shoulder when he came here and he was injected again, and it takes time to settle. It took longer than we expected, hence we are careful.

“The last thing we wanted was someone breaking down after 5-10 overs and then we are stuck for players to pick for Melbourne and Sydney.”

Indian openers Murali Vijay and KL Rahul have combined for just 97 runs in the first two Tests and Shastri put them on notice.

“It’s a big concern — it’s obvious,” he said.

“That responsibility and that accountability has to be taken by the top order.”

Hardik Pandya — who could replace Hanuma Vihari at No.6 — has been declared fit, although Shastri noted Pandya had played only one first-class game since September.

Mayank Agarwal, 27, will debut if one of the struggling openers is axed.

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Originally published as India coach Ravi Shastri defends under pressure captain Virat Kohli’s behaviour