Former Indian opener, Aakash Chopra gave an analysis on the current form of Virat Kohli, saying that the former skipper should be “an enforcer” rather than “an accumulator” of runs. Chopra also explained how adapting to new white-ball skipper Rohit Sharma’s brand of cricket will ‘liberate’ Virat as a batter. Speaking on Star Sports show ‘Game Plan’ ahead of the three-match ODI series between India and West Indies, Aakash opined that despite Kohli not being at his destructive best in recent times, he isn’t going through a rough patch.
Elaborating the same, Aakash Chopra said, “From a personal and individual standpoint, you want to convert those 50s into 100s because you’ve got to save something for the rainy days as well. He’s not going through a bad patch of form, so to speak, in terms of runs, but when you see him bat, you don’t see the same Virat Kohli.”
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He further elaborated, “He’s not imposing, he’s not dominating, he’s still scratching around, he’s scoring those runs and that’s what all great players do – we saw Sachin, Rahul – we’ve seen them accumulate runs, but he’s (Virat Kohli) not an accumulator, he’s an enforcer but he’s not there yet.”
The veteran cricketer is also eager to see how the new ODI captain, Rohit Shamra, will “stamp his authority” in the impending series and how Kohli will be adapting to the situation. Aakash feels that being part of a different set-up and philosophy will ‘liberate’ Kohli as the responsibility of a leader is now off his shoulders.
Explaining the same, Aakash Chopra said, “But the one thing I actually want to see, is now Rohit Sharma will have his stamp of authority and the brand of cricket that he wants to play. Virat Kohli has to be apart of the same philosophy. And once you have a different philosophy in place, sometimes it just liberates you, because you are not really thinking about, ‘Ok, I need to score or I need to do this. This is what all of us have to do together.'”
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He further elaborated, “And that is what I am waiting to see, whether it unleashes and liberates Virat Kohli, no matter you get out on 50 but score that 50 off 55 balls, don’t worry about scoring a century, finishing games off, as a captain, you’ve done it all this while. It’s no longer your only job, your job description has changed a little.”
The ODI series is scheduled to be commencing on February 6, with all matches being played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
