Former India player turned veteran commentator Aakash Chopra has said that Virat Kohli would be expected to be at his best in the upcoming ODI series against Australia as well. However, he urged fans to keep their expectations low, especially in the series opener. However, India will face Australia in a three-match ODI series, with the first game to
be played in Perth on Sunday, October 19 as well.

During a discussion on Star Sports, Chopra said, “When you talk about any player of this stature, they have set the expectations. It’s their standards. He has made us used to seeing him scoring runs whenever he comes. We are discussing the long wait and gap, but you assume Virat Kohli will score a century the day he comes out with a bat in hand. If he scores 40, it can be success for others, but it’s a failure for him.”

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“This is the standard he has set. He pays a price for his own success. He has achieved so much success and spread happiness. So, the expectation is that he will play with the same rhythm. However, since we follow cricket slightly closely, we say keep your expectations slightly watered down, at least for the first game,” he further added.

However, Aakash Chopra also added that Virat Kohli would have rarely had such a long break from competitive cricket during his career so far as well.

“If you don’t hit the ground running and the ball doesn’t strike the middle of your bat after three months, that is also par for the course, because this is happening for the first time even in his career, that he hasn’t played any cricket for three to three-and-a-half months. The last time it might have happened during COVID, four or five years ago, and it is happening now again. We all saw everyone’s bats being rusted after COVID, and we saw everyone taking time to regain their rhythm. So, if it takes a little time to find rhythm, it’s okay. Slightly watered-down expectations are also okay,” Aakash Chopra concluded.