Virat Kohli’s childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma has said that there is no extra pressure on his ward after he has decided to relinquish the Test captaincy duties.
Sharma reckons Kohli will be in a better mental space after giving up the extra responsibility of leadership and expects his ward to be at his best in the ODI series against South Africa.
In fact, Kohli had scored his last hundred back in 2019 in the pink-ball Test match against Bangladesh and since then he has failed to get to the three-digit mark. Sharma is expecting big runs from Kohli’s blade in the three-match ODI series against the Proteas.
Kohli’s coach revealed that he has been in touch with the talisman and he is feeling relaxed and seems to be enjoying himself.
During a discussion on the Khelneeti podcast, he said: “I hope he is in a better and positive frame of mind. There is no pressure on him now. He is relaxed and seems to be enjoying himself. I have been in touch with him and he is feeling quite at ease. When he is in a positive frame of mind, his performances are much better. His preparations are more mental. I feel his performance in the ODI series is going to be excellent.”
Meanwhile, Kohli has always been a consistent performer for the Indian team in all three formats of the game and he has played a key role in the success of the side over the years. Rajkumar added that there hasn’t been a bigger match-winner for the Indian team than Kohli for the national team.
He added, “After looking at all the stats, I can say that there has not been a bigger match-winner for India. Don’t think any other player has won so many games for India. He doesn’t have any point to prove or silence critics. In Indian cricket, people tend to forget achievements pretty soon. I am sure his bat will do the talking.”
Kohli’s former coach added that his student had to adopt a defensive approach in the third Test against South Africa as the middle-order didn’t deliver the goods. Kohli took 201 balls to score 79 runs in the first innings while he batted for 143 balls to score 29 runs in the second dig.
“He is in command but the team’s circumstances were such. The middle-order was very shallow, so Virat had to change his style. He never plays so defensively but he had to take up the responsibility. I am sure his hunger for runs will be greater. Expect some big scores.”
The first ODI between India and South Africa will be played at Boland Park, Paarl on Wednesday.
