Kohli moves to clarify 'friendship' comments

Injured India captain Virat Kohli has clarified his comments following his side's fourth Test win over in Dharamsala regarding his friendships with Australian players. 

Speaking after India sealed the series 2-1 at the foothills of the Himalayas, Kohli said his outlook on his Australian rivals and friends had changed following a heated series. 

Quick Single: Friendships over after heated series: Kohli

"No, it has changed," Kohli told a post-match media conference when asked if he stood by his affirmation of friendly rivalry made earlier in the series.

"I thought that was the case, but it has changed for sure.

"As I said, in the heat of the battle you want to be competitive but I've been proven wrong.

"The thing I said before the first Test, that has certainly changed and you won't hear me say that ever again."

Kohli was specifically referring to his pre-series comments regarding a good-spirited rivalry with the Australians, based on friendships formed through international cricket as well as the Indian Premier League. 

"I'm really good friends with all these guys off the field," Kohli said on February 22, a day out from the first Test in Pune.

"I know them really well, but I know where to draw the line of friendship.

"When you step onto the field, I could be playing against my big brother, it wouldn't matter."

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Kohli's dramatic change in perspective regarding those friendships was thought to have come about as a result of several confrontations and incidents through the Test series.

Most notable among these were an ongoing back-and-forth with Steve Smith in the second Test in Bengaluru, and following his injury in the third Test in Ranchi, when Glenn Maxwell was said to have mocked the Indian's shoulder injury, when he clutched his own shoulder following a boundary-line save. 

Kohli today took to Twitter to clarify his feelings on the matter, suggesting his comments had been "blown way out of proportion".

The 28-year-old next week begins his IPL campaign with Royal Challengers Bangalore, where Australians Shane Watson, Travis Head and Billy Stanlake also play. 

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Last year, Watson, Mitchell Starc and Kane Richardson played alongside Kohli at RCB, while fellow Australia rep Nic Maddinson has also lined up alongside the volatile Indian in the tournament.