"When You Aren't In Form...": Sunil Gavaskar On Virat Kohli's Edgbaston Test Failure

07.07.2022 - 15:07 sports.ndtv.com

Virat Kohli's ploy of trying to negate swing by meeting the ball early has backfired, feels the legendary Sunil Gavaskar, whose advise in English conditions has always been about playing as late as possible.

Kohli, who is now just four months short of completing three years without an international ton, scored 11 and 20 in the recently concluded rescheduled Test against England that India lost by seven wickets. "The trick to play in England is to play as late as possible.

Then you are allowing the ball to do its bit and then you are playing the ball. From what little I saw in the highlights, it seemed Kohli was looking to reach for the ball, trying to play the ball early," Gavaskar said on 'Sports Today'.

He pointed out that Kohli had enjoyed success in England in 2018 as he looked to play the ball very late. "Therefore, he was not looking like he was in 2018 when he was looking to play it very late around the off-stump." Gavaskar feels the reason behind Kohli's new approach could be the dip in form and paucity of runs in recent years.

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Virat Kohli's lean patch is currently one of the most-discussed topics in Indian cricket. The former Indian cricket team has failed to produce big scores in recent times. Some former Indian players have started questioning his place in the Indian cricket team, while others have backed the long rope being given to him. Kohli is not part of the ODI or the T20I squad for the upcoming Tour of West Indies. Many have wondered whether Kohli should be picked for the 2022 T20 World Cup or not, based on current form.

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