Kohli, Pujara have the same hunger for runs as Tendulkar, Dravid: Barry Richards

Kohli, Pujara are great additions to Indian side: Richards (AP Photo)

DURBAN: Barry Richards features in Don Bradman's best ever Test XI. He is one of those South African legends who couldn't express himself on the international circuit due to the apartheid regime. Still, in the four Test matches that he played for South Africa in the early 1970s, he averages a staggering 72.57.

South African cricket pundits often say that he was their best batsman before Jacques Kallis. Richards has played against Gary Sobers on the county circuit, he has seen Kallis grow into the greatest all-rounder of the modern generation and follows Indian cricket with a lot of intent. During a conversation with TOI on a grey December afternoon, Richards touched upon all these issues and other topics.

Excerpts:

Has the Indian Test performance come as a pleasant surprise to you?

It has for sure. I am very happy with the way they have adapted to the conditions after the struggle of the ODI series. That's the hallmark of a good team. It learns how to adapt to alien conditions. This team is showing that it has those qualities.

Being a batting legend yourself, what's your assessment ofCheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli?

Absolutely fantastic players! India are blessed to have such quality players. They are different, yet they have the same hunger for runs that I had seen in both Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar...These two are great additions to your side. Just that I wanted to see them in one more Test in Cape Town, it's a pity they are going home after Durban.

You mean they can be as good as Dravid and Tendulkar?

It's always difficult to fill the void left by legends, but they are definitely on the right track. But when such legendary players go, a team is bound to feel their absence for a while...South Africa will feel the pinch now that Jacques Kallis is gone.

Was it the right time for Kallis to go?

It's his decision, we have to accept that...He must have felt that he has lost the desire to carry on with the grind of Test cricket, that's why he decided to quit.

Critics are saying Kallis retired because his feet were not moving against the fast bowlers and he didn't want to take a chance against Mitchell Johnson in the next series?

Let the critics say what they want to ...They had said this before about Kallis and he had come back to score a century. If his feet were not moving, he could always work on that and even inJohannesburg in the second innings, he was batting pretty well...What is important is the desire to play and I think he lost that.

Is it a sensible decision to keep the 2015 World Cup options open?

It's difficult to say at the moment but knowing Kallis, he will put in all the hard work that is required to make the World Cup team...If he thinks winning the World Cup is an unfulfilled dream for him, he will try his best to ensure that he leaves cricket contended.

You have played against Sir Gary...How do you compare Kallis and Sir Gary?

I never compare eras, everything is different, it's like trying to compare apples and oranges...Sir Gary was a magnificent all-rounder, the best of his time, and so is Kallis. They will be remembered as greats in their own rights
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