Former Indian pacer Ashish Nehra reveals why Virat Kohli shouldn't be dropped, by comparing him to current Indian skipper Rohit Sharma.
Former Indian skipper Virat Kohli's lack of runs in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup 2022 has been a worrying factor for everyone related to Indian cricket. Kohli last scored an international century back in 2019, and since then he has failed to score big on a consistent basis.
More recently, during the IPL 2022, he was dismissed on golden ducks multiple times and even though Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) reached the playoffs, Kohli only managed 341 runs in 16 IPL matches.
He was looking in good touch during the warmup game against Leicestershire but in the rescheduled Test match vs England, the 33-year-old could only muster up 31 runs and in the following T20Is, he didn't fare any better.
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With players such as Deepak Hooda, Suryakumar Yadav, and Ishan Kishan knocking on the door, Kohli's place in the T20I side could be in danger. However, former Indian pacer Ashish Nehra has backed the Delhi-born batsman, saying that you simply cannot 'drop' Kohli straightaway and that 'dropping' a player is not the 'solution'.
Speaking to Cricketnext, the IPL 2022 winning coach of Gujarat Titans (GT) said, "It's not the first time that an out-of-form player has been given a rest. I admit that if a player isn't consistent for a long time, he faces the axe. For example, Virat Kohli."
"He has scored ample runs in international cricket and has done so much for the country. So, you cannot just drop him straightaway because of his lack of runs. Yes, he hasn't been consistent and he himself would be knowing that he hasn't performed up to his calibre. But dropping an individual is not always a solution," added Nehra.
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Comparing Kohli to Rohit Sharma, who also endured a torrid IPL 2022 campaign with Mumbai Indians (MI), Ashish Nehra stated that backing someone can yield results, as the Indian skipper scored 76 runs in the first ODI vs England, after below-par totals in the T20Is.
"There’s so much cricket happening around. And if Virat hasn’t got runs in the T20Is, so didn’t Rohit. Neither they have had a good IPL season. But now the latter scored got a fifty in the ODIs which majorly adds to his confidence," he stated.
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 "Ashish Nehra feels Virat Kohli cannot be dropped straightaway")
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