Indian great Sachin Tendulkar believes a batsman of Virat Kohli’s caliber will have his own plans of playing in the tough English conditions.
Kohli could only score 134 runs in five Test matches on India’s tour of England in 2014 but bounced back in style as he finished as the leading run-getter in the 2018 series with 593 runs in five games.
Meanwhile, Kohli scored his last International hundred back in 2019 in the pink-ball Test match against Bangladesh at Eden Gardens. There is no doubt that Kohli is India’s best batsman and it will be crucial for the team that their captain fires at all cylinders in the WTC final.
In fact, it hasn’t been the case that Kohli has been out of form. Sachin added that Kohli is a great student of the game and he will be fine in English conditions.
“I think outside the off-stump or whatever that is, all batters get out from there. So, I won’t look at whatever shot he is playing. What is the percentage that Kohli is getting the shots right, and how many times he has been dismissed? If we compare that, then the player has to assess and plan that these are the areas I need to tighten up. But I wouldn’t worry too much about all those things, it has been fine, to be honest.
“I am sure a batsman of his [Virat Kohli’s] calibre understands the game as he is a good student. He will have his plans. It need not be that ‘okay, I am not going to play this shot’. Sometimes you know, you adjust your stance and do many things at the crease that the bowlers sometimes don’t pick. All those minor tweaks one can do,” Tendulkar told ANI.
On the other hand, Sachin Tendulkar revealed his plans when he scored an iconic knock of 241 runs against Australia at Sydney. Before that Test match, Sachin was getting dismissed while playing the cover drive and he decided to shun that shot in Sydney and showed great patience against a potent Australian bowling attack.
“I started not playing that shot (drive), but it wasn’t decided in the dressing room. I went there on the field and figured out their strategy is to keep the ball away from me, so I said, okay, let’s see who loses patience first.
It was me against the 11, and I thought if you keep bowling the ball there, I will keep leaving it. If it is for two days, I will. It happened on the field, and I am sure with him also, he will realise what they are trying to do, and then you should have the flexibility to move from Plan A to Plan B and respond to various challenges.”
The WTC final takes place at Ageas Bowl, Southampton from June 18.
