Former Indian national cricket team all-rounder Irfan Pathan has taught modern-day great Virat Kohli some batting tricks after consecutive failures on the Australia tour.
Irfan Pathan has urged Virat Kohli not to be desperate to score runs against the Australia national cricket team and ensure he spends some time in the middle and enjoys batting.
Virat Kohli touches new low with double duck
Kohli has recorded a historic low in his career with his dreadful batting performance in the ongoing three-match ODI series against Australia, which the Men in Blue have already lost with a match to spare.
In the first ODI at the Perth Stadium, Virat Kohli was out for a duck while trying to play a drive outside the off-stump off Mitchell Starc and eventually got caught by Cooper Connolly.
Kohli’s same poor form continued in the second match as well and he was once again out for a duck. Xavier Bartlett bowled a length ball around the off-stump which slipped and hit Kohli on his pads as he tried to play a flick shot.
The umpire immediately raised his finger and after a conversation with Rohit Sharma, Kohli decided to walk off the field, acknowledging the crowd. This was the first time in his 304-match ODI career that Kohli was out for ducks in two consecutive matches.
But it is not easy to play if there is a sword hanging over your head – Irfan Pathan
In a video shared on his official YouTube channel, Irfan Pathan said that pressure, war or the atmosphere created around retirement could have led to Virat Kohli’s poor performance in the first two ODIs. Irfan Pathan said:
“2 matches, two nil – we have not seen that. It does not happen often. It could be pressure, war or anything. All these things are going on on social media, the atmosphere is being created. We have to be careful that the atmosphere does not affect these two players. If the performance is not there then they will not play.”
“But Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have done amazing things. So, it is important to stick with them if they are struggling. It is difficult because Yashasvi Jaiswal is on the bench. But if there is a sword hanging over your head, it is not easy to play. I hope it will not affect Kohli.”
“In the first match, he got out on the off stump. In the second match, he had this thing in his mind that there were three slips. He would have been wondering whether the ball would come on the off stump or not. The ball came back a bit and he went towards his favorite shot but got beaten. It was a big difference and you don’t see such a big difference in Kohli’s flick shots.”
He has to keep enjoying batting – Irfan Pathan
After highlighting the problem, Irfan Pathan also offered some solutions to Virat Kohli. The World Cup-winning all-rounder said Kohli should avoid getting into a state of frustration and enjoy his cricket the way he has been doing for over a decade. Irfan Pathan elaborated:
“How can he come out of that? He wants to get a run quickly and get out of strike. When you have two zeros in front of your name, you want a run. But he has to make sure he doesn’t get frustrated. He shouldn’t enjoy batting while being frustrated. He needs to keep enjoying batting. Once he spends time, the runs will come and he won’t look back. He loves ODI cricket the most.”
“But I request the fans that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma – they can play 1 year, 2 years or the World Cup. We may not see them playing much. The expectation is that they play as much cricket as possible. But it is time to enjoy their cricket because they have given a lot to Indian cricket. Hopefully Kohli will be back in form in the next match. Even if he struggles like Rohit Sharma, he needs to do that.” Is. Show your rhythm that he has. But don’t be desperate for singles, the runs will come.”
Also read: Virat Kohli ordered to regain form quickly to stay in ICC ODI World Cup 2027 plans