Former spinner Harbhajan Singh has urged Virat Kohli to play freely against spin after the star batter struggled to get used to spin during India’s Champions Trophy opener match against Bangladesh in Dubai.
Virat Kohli was dismissed for 22 runs off 38 deliveries in India’s successful chase of 229 runs on February 20.
He faced 10 dot balls against spin before being dismissed by leg spinner Rishad Hossain.
Kohli was seen frustrated as he struggled to rotate the strike during his partnerhsip with Shubman Gill, especially after Rohit Sharma had given India’s chase a blazing start with a 36 ball 41.
India’s scoring rate after Rohit’s dismissal as Kohli found difficult to rotate the strike before eventually playing a loose cut shot against Rishad.
“I certainly believe that slower bowlers, leggies, have given him some sort of discomfort. He needs to come up with some plan against leggies. He needs to find a way to convert those dot balls into singles.”
“I think when the form is not there, this is exactly what happens-you tend to take a lot more time, you tend to take more time to settle into an innings. That’s exactly what is happening with Virat Kohli.”
“Cricket is a great leveller. It goes on to show that no matter how big you are, your reputation will not count. But what you do there, the intent that you show, will take you forward,” said Harbhajan Singh.
“I think he is getting stuck because he is taking a bit more time. I believe he needs to back himself and play like Virat Kohli. He has got nothing to prove to anyone. He is a champion player.”
“Even if he retires today, he would go on to be recognised as a legend who served India really well. I believe he just needs to enjoy his game, take the extra baggage out of his mind, and bat freely,” he added.
Virat Kohli has had issues with his strike rate in the middle overs, coinciding with the period when spinners are in operation. During the recently concluded three match ODI series against England, he was dismissed twice by leg-spinner Adil Rashid.
Harbhajan Singh highlighted Kohli’s struggle is more of a mental issue than a techinical one, stressing that the star batter needs to back himself more when taking on spinners.
“Today (Thursday) was the opportunity, I believe, where he probably wanted to get back to form, wanted to face many more balls, and get ready for the Pakistan game,” he said.
“That didn’t happen. It was a very slow innings. Against the spinners, we have seen him unable to rotate strike. But we saw Virat Kohli playing lofted cover drives and sweep shots in Australia.”
“He needs to back himself to showcase what Virat Kohli was. He can still do the job. It’s just a mental thing. Only he can help himself to get out of this. The team needs him to score runs.
“He needs to do it from the next game. Imagine, if India play the semi-final against Afghanistan, he might have to face three quality spinners. So it’s time to work on it.
“He needs to start backing himself. People are there to watch him, go out there and enjoy.”
India will be hoping for Virat Kohli to find his rhythm when they meet their arch rivals Pakistan in much awaited contest on February 23 at Dubai International Stadium.
