IPL 2022: He just needs a breather – Michael Vaughan backs Virat Kohli to bounce back

 

Former England skipper Michael Vaughan has put his weight behind Virat Kohli to bounce back stronger into form. Virat Kohli had a disappointing season for RCB as he scored 341 runs from his 16 appearances at an average of 22.73. Furthermore, his strike rate was below par as he scored at 115.99.

Meanwhile, Kohli scored his last International hundred back in 2019 in the pink-ball Test match against Bangladesh at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. A lot of cricket boffins, including former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri reckon that Kohli needs a break to bounce back stronger.

Kohli has been rested for the upcoming five-match series against South Africa and he will return to action for the one-off Test match against England in June. Vaughan has advised Kohli to spend some quality time with his family till then and come back stronger.

In fact, it is worth mentioning that India’s schedule is always hectic and Kohli has played in all three formats, including the IPL, continuously in the last decade. Thus, it is imperative for him to recharge his batteries.

“He is a legendary player who is going through a phase that is not too easy. Two or three years ago you just turned on the telly or arrived at the ground and knew that Virat was going to score a hundred. He just went through one of those periods where every time he batters he seemed to get a hundred. It’s a career, isn’t it? You don’t go through your whole career where everything is so easy,” Vaughan told Cricbuzz.

“He just needs a breather. Go and get some time with your family, get on the plane to England and then start to hit some balls again.”

On the other hand, Vaughan believes Kohli should not worry about his game and he should ideally spend more time with his family.

“He is too good a player not to bounce back and he will have one of those periods again which we saw a few years ago where he got so many centuries,” Vaughan said.

“It is just that little bit harder at the minute and he has got to work so hard to get back into form. But I think at the minute, he should just pack his bat into his bag and go and a sit-down with the family. I don’t know where he can go without getting hassled and pestered, doing commercials. Just get away from all that, have a few weeks of chilling and he will be fresh when he picks the bat up,” he added.

Kohli has all the experience under his belt and he will look to bounce back stronger in the one-off Test match against England.