Don’t write off champions: Nathan Lyon on Kohli’s recent batting slump
The Australian team must be hoping to take advantage of Virat Kohli’s prolonged batting slump when the two sides clash in the five-Test series for the Border-Gavaskar trophy
Pakistan legend Mohammad Yousuf feels that there are many good batsmen in the current era but when it comes to choosing one, it would be Virat Kohli. Terming the India skipper “unbelievable”, the former all-rounder said Kohli is the best across formats.
Yousuf told during an interaction with Sportstar, “In today’s times, there are quite a few good players – Rohit Sharma, Joe Root, Steve Smith, Kane Williamson. But Kohli is the best across formats. The way he bats, the way he handles pressure in each innings and scores centuries or the way he plays – that’s unbelievable.”
Kohli is constantly rated as the best batsman in the world because of his adaptability to different situations and different formats.
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The right-hander’s records, especially in the white-ball format, are staggering. He averages above 50 in all forms of international cricket. In Tests, Kohli has scored 7240 runs at an average of 53.62 and in ODIs, he has scored 11867 runs at an average of almost 60. In the shortest format, Kohli has played 82 matches in which he has scored 2794 runs.
Comparisons are always drawn between Kohli and Pakistan batting sensation Babar Azam. However, Yousuf turned down the debate by saying that it’s not right to do so as their games are different.
“There is no doubt that Babar is a solid batsman, but it’s not right to compare as both are zabardast (brilliant) players in their own domain. Kohli is the number 1 at the moment, he is a great player,” said Yousuf, who played 279 ODIs and 90 Tests for Pakistan.
Babar has played 74 ODIs, 38 T20Is and 26 Tests for Pakistan in which the right-hander has amassed 3359, 1471 and 1850 runs. The Pakistan batter averages above 50 in the white-ball formats.
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