India’s former legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar reckons Virat Kohli is not out of form but luck is evading him in the recent past.
Kohli has been averaging around 28 in the red-ball version in the last two years whereas he is averaging 53 in ODI cricket.
Kohli has always been super consistent in all three forms of the game and he is judged by the lofty standards he has set for himself. The former Indian captain hasn’t been able to get going in the ongoing series against West Indies as he has scored only 26 runs in two matches.
Kohli was dismissed while trying to play the pull shot in the first ODI and looked unsettled at the crease. Subsequently, he was dismissed by Odean Smith in the second game when he was trying to play a cover drive but didn’t have the right balance.
Gavaskar said every batter needs a bit of luck on his side but Kohli hasn’t had the rub of the green on his side. Kohli had scored two fifties in the ODI series against South Africa but he hasn’t been able to convert his starts into big scores. The right-hander had scored his last International hundred back in 2019 when he scored a century against Bangladesh in the pink-ball Test.
“Luck (What is Kohli missing?). Every batter needs a bit of luck. Every batter needs a situation where he plays and misses an edge. Every batter needs a situation where he edges the ball and the catch is dropped or the ball falls short of the fielder.
“He hasn’t quite had the best of luck in the last so many matches. Don’t forget, he got fifties in South Africa,” Gavaskar told Star Sports.
On the other hand, former West Indies fast bowler and now a broadcaster Ian Bishop said that the Windies bowlers have bowled well to Virat Kohli.
“I thought they (West Indies pacers) bowled well to Virat Kohli. They did not overdo the short-ball bit. Odean Smith set it up wonderfully, the way he pushed Kohli back and then got a fuller delivery.
“Kohli looked to set himself up for a big one and then he got that one after being pushed back. Smith bowled it in that lovely area, inviting a drive but not fullish enough to play the shot. I thought that was good bowling,” Bishop said.
The third ODI between India and West Indies will be played on Friday.
