When Ashish Nehra backed a seemingly diffident Virat Kohli

Ashish Nehra, who has worked closely with the Indian batting ace during his time at Royal Challengers Bangalore, backed his Delhi ex-teammate to come out of this rut soon

Former India pacer Ashish Nehra has backed struggling Virat Kohli. India’s most successful Test captain has been out of sorts with runs drying up quickly and the gap only widening to get to the three-figure mark once again since 2019 [139 against Bangladesh during the day-night Test at Eden Gardens]. While several experts called for the dropping Kohli, Nehra, who has worked closely with the Indian batting ace during his time at Royal Challengers Bangalore, backed his Delhi ex-teammate to come out of this rut soon.

“Yes, it’s not written anywhere that he will keep playing for India even if he doesn’t score runs. But when you have done so much in the past, you will always get extra chances,” said Nehra during a virtual interaction organised by Sony Sports Network, the host broadcaster for India’s tour to England. “Yes, you get dropped when you don’t perform. However, there are many ifs and buts. When you’re a player like Virat who has scored runs and done so much for the country, he can’t be dropped straightaway. Virat hasn’t been among runs, but dropping him isn’t the solution. We are discussing Virat as an example. Even [skipper] Rohit [Sharma] struggled before returning to form in the 50-over game. He struggled in this year’s IPL and other T20 games,” Nehra added.

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Kohli missed the first ODI against England due to a groin injury. He has not been included in the ODI and T20 squads for the forthcoming series in the West Indies. Nehra felt the break should rejuvenate Kohli. “Everybody knows his accomplishments and the talent he has. At the age of 33, fitness isn’t a problem for him. Everybody is hopeful that Virat will come good, the quicker the better. Let’s hope we see a different Virat after the West Indies series. If he rests for a month or five odd weeks, it will be helpful for him,” he said. 

Ashish Nehra. Pic/AFP

Nehra, who coached Gujarat Titans to victory on their IPL debut, warned the Indian team management against considering Hardik Pandya as an all-rounder just yet. “Hardik should be considered as a pure batter. If he bowls, it should be a bonus. He should be the fifth or sixth bowler option,” Nehra emphasised. 
“When you talk of Hardik Pandya, everyone knows what sort of a talent he is. It’s just because of the injury that he wasn’t in the team. And the way he has started bowling once again and the way he is batting, I am not at all surprised. If he is fit, he can be a part of any [format] team. He has now to slowly build on this. No one is better than Pandya with the way he provides balance to the team as the sixth bowling option," Nehra concluded.

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