Pakistan ex-cricketer Basit Ali has voiced his surprise at Virat Kohli’s struggles against Sri Lankan spinners. Kohli is currently representing India in the ODI series in Colombo. Kohli has failed to show up in the first two matches against the hosts with scores of 24 and 14. Seeing him struggle on Sri Lankan soil, Basit opined that the ace Indian batter was not in practice. Speaking on his YouTube channel, he said, “A great batsman like Virat Kohli, the world’s number one batsman, has been out LBW twice. It’s understandable if it happens to Iyer or Dube, but Virat Kohli is Virat Kohli. This means that he is not in practice."
Later in his video, Ali also suggested that KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer had joined the ODI series without much practice. Speaking about the poor show, the Pakistan ex-cricketer said, “It did not seem that this is the batting lineup which rules the world. I feel that Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul probably haven’t even practised. These people have come without practice."
He also suggested that India should now focus more on their young players saying, “I don’t understand what is Shreyas Iyer going to do with such performances. I think the time has come for Rishabh Pant, Riyan Parag, and Rinku Singh."
Virat Kohli made his return to international cricket on August 2 for the first time since the T20 World Cup 2024. But Kohli has struggled to regain his form in the opening ODI fixture under his newly appointed head coach Gautam Gambhir. He was adjudged LBW in both matches. In the first match, Kohli was dismissed by Wanindu Hasaranga in the 24th over. He had hit two boundaries in that fixture. Kohli’s dismissal proved to be crucial in Sri Lanka’s victory, as the hosts converted a nearly-lost game to a tie.
Not much changed in the second ODI as Kohli fell victim to Jeffrey Vandersay on August 4. Chasing a total of 240, Kohli was dismissed in the 20th over scoring 14 runs. His knock comprised two boundaries. India had ended up losing that match by 32 runs.
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