Former Indian cricketer VVS Laxman has said that strong basic is the reason behind Virat Kohli’s meteoric rise in all the formats. An average of over 50 in ODIs and T20I and over 44 in Tests, the batting sensation is one of the few batsmen who is performing well in all the formats.
Speaking after delivering the Dilip Sardesai memorial lecture, Laxman said:“The reason I mentioned a lot of Virat (Kohli) is because he knows his strengths and backs them. He is a conventional cricketer and has got strong basis.”
“If you have to perform consistently in all the three formats, you should have strong basics, which Virat has.”
“I feel Virat has a long way to go in Test match cricket and he will break all records. His average will be close to where his average currently is in ODIs and T20s. Virat is a complete batsman in this generation,” he said.
The Hyderabadi batsmen felt that the Indian Test skipper played a big role in KL Rahul’s transformation from a Test specialist to a T20 star. During the beginning of his career, the Karnataka batsman was not known for scoring runs at a fast pace but he surprised one and all with his brilliant batting performance in this year’s IPL. He gave another proof of his transformation when he hit a century in the T20 series against West Indies.
“K L Rahul has transformed himself into a good T20 player and I believe that Virat has a huge influence on the transformation of Rahul. Rahul knows how to get runs in all three formats by playing in his normal, conventional, classical style,” said Laxman.
When asked to express his views on the much-debated pink ball, he said: “It’s a work in progress, especially in India where dew is a big factor. Also the ball they used in the Duleep Trophy was a different one to what they used in the New Zealand-Australia Test match in Adelaide.It is more about not losing the hardness and the shine because in India the wickets will not have that much of grass cover, even though the grounds are lush green and well-maintained.“A lot of effort and time will go in making sure that the ball is right because any match should not be dictated by ball. They are trying to make sure that the seam is thicker compared to the match played in Adelaide.”
The Indian team was known as poor travellers but the trend changed during the beginning of the last decade. And Laxman felt that John Wright, who was the first foreign coach for India, played a big role in it.
“Within the team the growing urge to become more competitive overseas came with the arrival of, in our coaching set up, John Wright, the first overseas coach of a national side. John was laid-back, but was also very demanding.
“He believed we had what he felt in terms of talent, mental fortitude, temperament and resolve to be a strong force outside our shores,” Laxman concluded.