IND vs SL 2022: "Virat Kohli is the greatest cricketer I have seen at international level" - Brad Hogg

Former Australian spinner Brad Hogg has made a huge statement about Virat Kohli, declaring the 33-year-old as the greatest cricketer he has seen at the international level.

Kohli is about to play his 100th Test against Sri Lanka at Mohali from Friday and has simply been sensational for India over the years. While Sachin Tendulkar is considered by many to be the greatest batter to have ever graced the game, Brad Hogg had a different opinion.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, the 51-year-old explained why he feels Kohli had to work harder than Tendulkar to maintain his fantastic consistency levels.

"For me, they (Sachin and Virat) have made the same amount of hundreds in one-day cricket and Tests," he said. "But Kohli has played 20 more games than Sachin at that time and has got a few more fifties as well.

"Kohli has also throughout his career played 200 more first-class games and that includes the IPL games," he added. "So he has played a lot more games than Sachin did."

Hogg further elaborated on why he feels Kohli is the greatest player that he has seen at the international level and hailed him for his mental toughness.

"He didn't have the time to rejuvenate his batteries," he said. "He was leading India in all three formats. He was leading RCB. So it just shows the toughness he had to control his emotions. For me Virat Kohli is probably the greatest cricketer that I have seen at the international level."

"What Virat Kohli brought to the Indian line-up as a leader was astronomical" - Brad Hogg

Brad Hogg believes Virat Kohli has made a huge difference to the way the Indian team has played since he took over as the captain. He guided the Indian team from seventh in the ICC Test Rankings to the pinnacle and instilled a fitness culture in the team.

On Kohli's success as India's skipper, Hogg asserted:

"What Virat Kohli brought to the Indian line-up as a leader was astronomical. The fitness regimes were non-negotiable. MS Dhoni had already taken India to a new level, but Kohli took India to another level and the win percentages with him leading the team far outweigh any other skipper that has led India."

It will be interesting to see whether Kohli will get that elusive 71st international hundred in his 100th Test.