Former India cricketer Saba Karim feels Virat Kohli to regain his form in red-ball cricket during the second Test match against Australia in New Delhi. Kohli, who returned to form in limited-overs formats last year, is still struggling to score big in Tests. The batting maestro was dismissed for just 12 in the Nagpur Test as the pressure is now mounting on him to post a big score as his last Test century came way back in 2019.
Since 2020, Kohli has scored 929 runs in 21 Test matches at an average of 25.80 without any century.
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Karim suggested that it is going to be tough for Kohli if it turns out to be a turning track in Delhi and said that the batter needs to be a bit cautious while batting on a rank-turner.
“It will be a big challenge for Virat Kohli if it’s a turning pitch, Karim told India TV News.
“It will be tough for the other batters as well because it isn’t easy to score runs on such wickets. You need to have a very strong temperament and caution to do well. Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel did that in the first Test,” he added.
The former wicketkeeper batter further suggested that playing in Delhi will help Kohli as he has a rich experience of playing in the venue.
“Kohli has played a lot of cricket in Delhi and has also played his domestic cricket there. However, a lot will depend on the wicket.”
In recent times, Kohli has struggled against the spinners as Todd Murphy and Nathan Lyon are expected to put a tough challenge in front of him.
“Virat Kohli’s last Test ton came in Kolkata in a pink ball Test,” he added. “He has not scored a hundred in this format for quite some time now. It is a very big challenge for a player of his stature as he’d want to score hundreds with regularity to be able to regain his prime form. This is a great opportunity for him as he will play at his favourite venue, which is also his home ground. Such things do benefit players and boost their confidence,” he added.
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The 34-year-old will be playing a match where a stand is named after him and Karim said that it is going to be a memorable match for him.
“This will be a memorable Test match for Virat Kohli,” the former cricketer elaborated. I was present when he was felicitated, and a stand was named after him at the stadium. It’s a big honour. I am sure Kohli will be humbled by this honour. This shows how much he has achieved, and it will definitely motivate him,” he said.
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