Clarke felt Kohli has enough fans Down Under. (Getty Images)

PUNE: The Australian media and some of the current players may not waste any opportunity to criticize Virat Kohli , but Michael Clarke things highly of the Indian captain.

The former Aussie captain feels the Indian batting stalwart is often misunderstood for his on-field antics, especially in Australia, but he felt Kohli has enough number of fans Down Under.

"I disagree that Virat doesn't have too many fans in Australia. I think Virat has a lot of Australian in him," said Clarke, who was in the city to promote Tourism Australia. "To be honest, he plays the game really tough and is really competitive on the field, but he is a nice guy off the field. So when people get to know Virat, they realize that what they see on the field is just his competitive spirt. I can't think of any Australian cricketer who wasn't like that every time we walked out on the field. I certainly think there is respect for Virat in Australia.

"You probably are not going to read the positive stuff (about Virat) in the Australian media though. They all want to write a negative story. But I have a great relation with him and I think he is respectful," added 'Pup'.

Clarke, who a few days ago had apparently asked Australian skipper Steve Smith to contribute more on the cricketers' pay dispute agitation, sounded relaxed on the both parties - Cricket Australia and the Australian cricketers' union - reaching an agreement.

"It is fantastic that the deal has been done and everybody can focus on cricket. Australia will be travelling to Bangladesh very soon and then we come to India and then the Ashes, so it is wonderful that the game can now move forward. The players can focus on what they do the best - playing - and the administrators can do their job too. I think everybody is sick and tired of talking about it and very happy that it's over," he said.

When asked who was right in the dispute, Clarke said, "I don't need to take sides. There have been compromises from both the parties, but now I am glad the focus is back on cricket."

The BCCI recently had asked their commentary panel to sign an undertaking of not having any conflict of interest. Clarke said: "I have no idea if that is the case (that there can be conflict while commentating). To me, commentary is all about trying to take the viewers as close to the players as possible. When the batsman is batting, the viewer should feel like he is sitting beside the batsman and know what he is thinking or what the captain is thinking that time. That's what I have always seen in the commentary and that's what I try to do. Your job is to have your opinion and make a call on what you see, so for me, there will be no conflict."

