Team India’s batting coach Vikram Rathour spoke in detail about Virat Kohli’s poor form ahead of the side’s match against Bangladesh. Team India’s batting coach, Vikram Rathour, touched upon Kohli’s form in detail ahead of the side’s second match in the Super Eight stage against Bangladesh. According to Rathour, Kohli has been “challenged,” but his lean run is allowing the less experienced players to step up and contribute to the team’s cause.
Team India has had an unbeaten run at the T20 World Cup so far, but one of the lingering concerns throughout the tournament has been the lack of runs from its star batter, Virat Kohli. While India topped their group convincingly with wins over Ireland, Pakistan, and the USA, and also produced a strong performance to cruise past Afghanistan in their opening Super Eight match, Kohli has struggled in all four innings in the tournament so far.
Virat Kohli’s poor run in the T20 World Cup as an opener.
In the group stage, Kohli failed to breach double figures with a combined score of five in three innings. On Friday against Afghanistan, Kohli made a wary start to his innings but fell as he tried to up the ante, scoring run-a-ball 24. The Indian batting stalwart Virat Kohli has been opening the innings alongside Rohit Sharma, a role he has only performed once for India in T20Is before the ongoing World Cup but one in which he has significant experience in the Indian Premier League.
Kohli was India’s highest run-scorer at the T20 World Cup in the previous edition, and the side will expect one of its best batters to step up in the remainder of the Super Eight, which also includes the blockbuster clash against Australia on Monday.
Indian batting coach Vikram Rathour has admitted that he’s not happy with the fact that Virat Kohli has not scored too many runs in the ongoing T20 World Cup. At the same time, he asserted that it’s good for the players to be challenged at times.
India batting coach Vikram Rathour is not happy on Virat Kohli’s poor form in T20 WC
Indian batting coach Vikram Rathour has admitted that he’s not happy with the fact that Virat Kohli has not scored too many runs in the ongoing T20 World Cup. At the same time, he asserted that it’s good for the players to be challenged at times.
The Men in Blue are unbeaten in the 2024 T20 World Cup. After winning three consecutive matches in the group stage, they beat Afghanistan by 47 runs in their first Super 8 match in Barbados. While India have had a fantastic campaign, Kohli has struggled big time, managing only 29 runs at an average of 7.25.
India’s second Super 8 clash will be against Bangladesh at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound, Antigua, on Saturday, June 22. At the pre-match press conference, Rathour shared his views on Kohli’s struggles with the bat in the ongoing T20 World Cup.
“I’m not happy. I would love it if he gets going and scores more runs. But yeah, it is good when you are challenged at times.
“You know, the guys who are not getting too much of batting in India sometimes, they are the ones who put up scores today and our middle-order came to play. So, it was good to see,” the former India opener was quoted as saying by PTI.
Interestingly, while India played three pacers and two spinners in group stage, they went in with three slow bowlers in the Super 8 match against Afghanistan. Rathour admitted that the versatility in the 15-member squad is one of their strengths.
“We’ve always had depth as a team, I believe. But yeah, these conditions maybe suit us more because we can afford to play two or three spinners at times. So that I believe can be our best team. That is our strength,” the 55-year-old said.
“It feels like … somebody like Axar (Patel) playing at eight gives you a lot of confidence because he can bat and he’s bowling really well at the moment. So, it does give you a lot of options,” he added.
Axar Patel has been a key member of the Indian squad in the T20 World Cup, chipping in with crucial runs as well as wickets.
“We already played in the worst possible conditions in New York” – Vikram Rathour
India played their first three matches in the group stage in New York in extremely challenging batting conditions. Vikram Rathour expects the pitches to be comparatively easier to bat on in the West Indies.
“We already played in the worst possible conditions in New York. So, anything after that is feeling good only. So, I am expecting wickets to be better (here),” the 55-year-old asserted.
India’s opponents on Saturday, Bangladesh, went down to Australia by 28 runs (DLS method) in their opening Super 8 match in Antigua. The batting coach, though, said that the Men in Blue won’t take it easy against Bangladesh, knowing how dangerous they can be.
“They’re a good unit. They have a lot of guys who can spin the ball and they are good in certain conditions. And these conditions do suit them a little as a team I think because the wickets seem to have a bit of help for the spinners and they do have spinners in their team,” Rathour said.
“But again, in this format I think every team is a tough team. I don’t believe any contest in T20 cricket is an easy contest,” he added.
India have a 12-1 lead over Bangladesh in the T20I format, but many of these games have been closely contested. Significantly, the Men in Blue have never lost to Bangladesh in the T20 World Cup.