Virat Kohli commands great respect from everyone in Team India, says Ravi Shastri

New Delhi: Arriving freshly from the historic tour-wash over a beleaguered Sri Lanka side, Team India are now up against a formidable Australian team for a limited-over series. And ahead of the all-important series kicks off head coach Ravi Shastri reveals that with Virat Kohli's evolution as a cricketer, most team members are willing to follow his work ethics.

India skipper Kohli has truly been, off late, at the best of his form, no matter which form of cricket you speak about and which part of the game you speak about. During India's Tour of Sri Lanka, the Delhi dasher notched up his 30th ODI century becoming the fastest batsman to achieve the feat and also is now the second highest on the all-times list of ODI tons. A No. 1 batsman on ODI rankings list, the 28-year-old went on to equal Sachin Tendulkar's ratings, the highest ever by an Indian batsman in the 50-over format.

Speaking about his captaincy, Virat was handed over Test responsibilities when Mahendra Singh Dhoni had stepped down from the captaincy role after the Boxing Day Test against Australia in 2014. Since then, he led his side to Test victories over Sri Lanka, South Africa, West Indies, New Zealand, England, Bangladesh, Australia and once again Sri Lanka. They are now the No. 1 Test team.

It was earlier this year, that Kohli was handed over the responsibilities of the Men in Blue in the limited-over circuit. He led his country to the finals of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017, but eventually suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of Pakistan. But he regrouped his side to bag the ODI series against West Indies and then Sri Lanka.

Owing to his continuos brilliance with the willow and with the captain's arm-band, head coach Shastri was full of praise speaking about the Delhi-based cricketer in a recent interview to India Today.

"Virat has evolved magnificently as a player and captain. He is confident and commands great respect from everyone in the team," Shastri said.

"Everyone wants to emulate Virat. He has such strong work ethic and with the position he is in, there is no room for excuses. The next three years will define Virat," he added.

Team India will start off with their home series against Australia with the first ODI to be played at Chidambaram Stadium on September 17. Following a the series against Australia, they have the New Zealand team lined up.