Sydney: Indian skipper Virat Kohli has heaped praise on left-arm pacer T Natarajan following the third and final T20I against Australia in Sydney.

Natarajan, selected in the national side for the first time, picked up six wickets in the three T20Is at an economy of just under 7 and was instrumental in India clinching the series 2-1. Kohli commended the 29-year-old’s work ethic and revealed that he could be a handy asset heading into the T20 World Cup at home next year.

In the absence of Shami and Bumrah, he’s been the guy who has stood up and really delivered under pressure, which is outstanding for the fact that he’s playing his first few games at the international level and he looks very composed, Kohli said after India’s 12-run loss in the dead rubber.

He’s very sure of what he wants to do, he’s a very hardworking guy, very humble guy. And you feel happy for guys who are committed and working hard for the team, when they get the results and make the team win.

I wish him all the best and I hope he continues to work hard on his game and keeps getting better. Because a left-arm bowler is always an asset for any team and if he can bowl that well and consistently, I think he’ll be a great thing for us heading into the World Cup next year.

Test cricket is a different challenge altogether, Kohli pointed out. ‘We need him to bowl, we’ve spoken to him about it. That’s when he becomes the one guy who brings a lot of balance for us if you’ve seen our cricket overseas as well. In South Africa and England as well, we were able to compete for longer periods in Test matches because he brought a lot of balance in terms of balance.’