Virat Kohli has endured a horror run in IPL 2022 thus far [P/C: iplt20.com]
Aakash Chopra has said that Virat Kohli‘s prolonged barren run with the bat is making cricket fans teary-eyed.
Kohli was dismissed for a golden duck in last night’s IPL 2022 encounter between the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). This was the RCB batting mainstay’s second consecutive first-ball dismissal in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League.
Bangalore were bowled out for just 68 runs, the lowest total in IPL 2022, in 16.1 overs. In reply, SRH chased down the paltry target in just eight overs with nine wickets in hand.
While reviewing the RCB-SRH clash in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra said the following about Kohli’s dismissals:
“The question is what about Virat Kohli, when will he score runs, whether they will be scored or not. Two consecutive golden ducks, he has gotten run out twice in this season, we are getting tears in our eyes.”
The cricketer-turned-commentator added that he empathizes with Kohli and Rohit Sharma for the lean run they are enduring. Chopra elaborated:
“I always say that Dhoni, Rohit, Kohli – they become emotions – and you are feeling a little empathy now, with both Rohit and Kohli. We really hope that they do well but it is going very bad at the moment. You do feel for Kohli.”
Both Kohli and Sharma have struggled for runs in IPL 2022 thus far. While the former has aggregated 119 runs at an average of 17.00, the Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper has managed 114 runs with a similar average of 16.28.
“We will have to talk about Virat Kohli” – Aakash Chopra
Ravi Shastri believes Virat Kohli needs a break from cricket [P/C: iplt20.com]
While acknowledging that none of RCB’s top-order batters scored runs against SRH, Aakash Chopra pointed out that Kohli is the biggest concern. He reasoned:
“We can talk about Faf (Du Plessis) as well but he scored runs in the last match, we can talk about Anuj Rawat as well but he is a kid. We will have to talk about Virat Kohli because the runs are not getting scored at all.”
The 44-year-old added that Kohli got dismissed off a delivery he would have normally crunched for a boundary. Chopra explained:
“It was a far-away delivery in the last match, played it and got caught. Here the ball was pitched right up, if it had been the normal Virat Kohli, he would have played a straight drive, shown the mirror and held the pose. But here, little foot movement, outside edge and caught.”
Chopra is also unsure if Ravi Shastri’s suggestion of a prolonged break from cricket is a remedy for Kohli’s travails. He observed:
“What he should do, I have got no idea. Ravi bhai (Shastri) has said that he should take a three-month break. Maybe that’s the answer because everyone had thought that a lot of runs will be scored with the captaincy not being there.”
Aakash Chopra concluded by stating that he stands with Kohli while hoping that the latter’s bad phase shall pass. He pointed out that a player doesn’t need support in good times but when he is going through a barren run.
