Virat Kohli’s form doesn’t trouble India head coach Ravi Shastri, who feels it’s only a matter of time that his captain raises his bat in elation again
India skipper Virat Kohli during the first T20I against England at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Friday. Pics/AFP
India’s head coach Ravi Shastri is not losing sleep over captain Virat Kohli’s unimpressive form which has spilled over to the start of the T20 series against England.
“I am not worried with Virat not getting runs. He will make up for everything anytime. He is the kind of batsman who alone can score runs of two to three other cricketers.
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“Like Sunil Gavaskar, whose 50 years of international cricket India is celebrating, Virat too can carry the team on his shoulders. Yes, he has not got a big score recently, but I am sure he will start scoring runs heavily. I am not worried at all about my captain. He is batting great in the nets as well,” Shastri told Sunday mid-day.
Kohli could manage only 172 runs in six innings of the recently-concluded four-match Test series against England. His best effort of 72 came in the second innings of the opening Test at Chennai. Twice he was dismissed for a duck and he didn’t trouble the scorers in the first T20 international at Ahmedabad on Friday.
Ravi Shastri
Kohli’s next Test challenge comes in the form of New Zealand in the World Test Championship final at Southampton in June. The Indian captain would be motivated by the fact that the winner becomes the numero uno team in the world and victory would also avenge the 0-2 loss to the Kiwis in 2019-20.
Meanwhile, the frustration on Kohli’s face was clear to see as he walked off after getting out to Adil Rashid’s leg-spin just three overs into the game on Friday.
But the premier batsman said the flops have to be accepted and dealt with. His last big T20 score was an 85 against Australia in December. “It is part of the whole journey of international cricket. When you have played for that long you will have your ups and down, you have to accept that as a batsman,” said Kohli.
“On your day you will probably end up scoring much more. But the important thing is keep true to your intent and plan as a batsman and understand sometimes the bowling team will come out and execute better than your plans.”
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