Former Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has spoken openly about star batsman Virat Kohli’s struggles with the bat during the ongoing ODI series against Australia. Ashwin expressed hope that Virat will return with a strong performance in the third and final ODI on Saturday, October 25 at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
In the current ODI series against Australia, Kohli was out for consecutive zeroes. He comes into the series after a seven-month break from international cricket since the 2025 Champions Trophy in Dubai. Notably, he recorded the first back-to-back ducks in his ODI career, which surprised many in the cricket community.
Really hope Virat Kohli comes back and scores – Ravichandran Ashwin
Speaking on his YouTube show, Ravichandran Ashwin warned that critics are ready to judge Virat Kohli if he fails again. Ashwin stressed that before people start pointing fingers, Virat should score runs.
Ashwin said, “I really hope he comes back and scores in Sydney. Whatever happened with Rohit today (Thursday), Virat Kohli needs that in Sydney, because in India we don’t discuss why we lost; often, we discuss why we lost. Before people start pointing fingers, I hope Virat scores runs.”
After retiring from T20 and Test, Virat is now active only in the 50 over format. In the first two ODIs against Australia, he faced only 12 balls in both matches, raising questions over his form and future in the format.
Virat Kohli got out the way Rohit Sharma used to get out – R Ashwin
Ravichandran Ashwin said that before the third match, the burden of getting out on both incoming and outgoing balls will be on Virat Kohli’s mind. Ashwin said that the right-handed batsman misjudged the line and was out to Xavier Bartlett.
“From what I saw today, I think Virat got out the way Rohit used to get out. But Rohit survived that initial tough phase with a bit of luck. He looked very good after the initial phase,” Ashwin said.
“I want to talk something about Virat’s dismissal. Xavier Bartlett is a player who can bowl outswingers at 130-135 kmph. After bowling the outswinger, he set Kohli well. The commentators said that the ball had gone towards the seam after being pitched.”
“Yes, it happened. But the line itself was around off-stump and middle-stump. Kohli put his foot across the line. Yes, Virat was cutting balls outside the off-stump and getting out. But it has been a long time since I have seen him getting out like that, failing to connect with the ball coming in from the seam.”
Rohit Sharma scores 73 runs due to Virat Kohli’s struggle in the second ODI
Virat Kohli’s struggles continued in the second ODI, while Rohit Sharma overcame the challenging conditions to score 73 runs on 97 balls.
After bowling three consecutive outswingers, Xavier Bartlett bowled a seaming ball which hit Kohli’s pads. Kohli, expecting another away ball, planted his foot across the line and lunged forward. The batsman did not use the review before going back to the dressing room.
In the first ODI, Mitchell Starc continuously took the ball away from Kohli. The former captain bowled an outswing ball in the opening match of the series. His weakness against balls going away was also exposed during the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
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