Brian Lara: You cannot write Virat Kohli off

Former West Indies great Brian Lara has backed Virat Kohli to bounce back to his best after a string of low scores in recent times.
 By CX Staff Writer Aug 8, 2022, 19:27 IST
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Virat Kohli is primed for a return at the Asia Cup 2022 beginning August 27.

Virat Kohli’s recent slump in form has been a major subject of discussion in the cricketing world, with many current and former cricketers extending their piece of advice and support to the modern-day great.

Kohli hasn’t been able to add to his tally of 70 international hundreds since November 2019, and had an underwhelming tour of England recently, wherein he managed scores of 11 and 20 in the Edgbaston Test. In the two of three T20Is he played in, he could manage mere 1 and 11, before returning 16 and 17 during the subsequent ODI series.

His strike-rate in T20s too, has come under scrutiny in recent times. He scored at a low 115.99 during the Royal Challengers Bangalore’s run to the IPL 2022 playoffs, registering six single-digit scores including three first-ball ducks.

The former India captain opted out of the team’s recent tour of the West Indies featuring three ODIs and five T20Is, and is now primed for the upcoming Asia Cup 2022 to be played in the UAE between August 27 and September 11.

Brian Lara, the former West Indies captain, backs Kohli to rediscover his dominant best in near future, adding the a player of his stature can’t be written off.

"I respect Virat Kohli as a player, but you see, he is going to come out of it as a much better player. He will be learning a lot of things at this point in time. You cannot write him off," Lara told veteran sports journalist Vimal Kumar in a video interview.

Meanwhile, Lara also showered praises on India skipper Rohit Sharma, who demonstrated his aggressive best, during India’s 4-1 T20I series win against the West Indies.

"He is an unbelievable player. I think lots of Indian players are very aggressive and Rohit is an amazing player," he said.

India are expected to name a full-strength squad for the Asia Cup with the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia a little over two months away.

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