Virat Kohli’s performance in England tour in 2014 had rattled him for good because he went on to improve his skills after that forgettable series. The aggressive player was questioned for his batting techniques at that time.
He had to face a lot of criticism for his performance. As Kohli recounts that tour memory, he said that he was grateful for what happened that year because it helped him to become a better cricket.
Kohli had returned with scores of 1, 8, 25, 0, 39, 28, 0, 7, 6 and 20 in five Tests, averaging 13.50 in his ten innings, and then cemented that with 0, 40, 1 not out and 13 in ODIs. However, when India next toured England in 2018, the run machine-scored heavily, registering one hundred and two half-centuries. Overall, he scored 593 runs in five Test matches at an average of over 59. But how things turned for Virat Kohli?
Virat Kohli changed his approach:
Virat Kohli was under sharp pang of remorse after the series of low scores. He revealed that he was rigid about changing his approach but realised his mistake. He worked on his flaws and understood his game better.
“In the 2014 England tour, it was basically about not adjusting to the conditions and doing things that I wanted to do and being rigid about it. Being rigid about anything doesn’t get you anywhere. It was a long and painful realisation but I realised it,” said Kohli while speaking with Mayank Agarwal on the series ‘Open Nets with Mayank’ hosted by bcci.tv.
“2014 tour is always going to be a milestone in my career. I really had to sit down and change things about how I approach the game before that tour, the way I played the game and start being more fearless.
Kohli learned to be more composed:
With improving his technique, Virat Kohli also learned to maintain his composure during tough situations. He admitted that he would never have changed his approach if he hadn’t gone through that painful experience.
“I realised that in Test cricket when it gets tough, to maintain your composure is the most difficult thing for a cricketer and that was something which I really needed to correct.
“If that tour hadn’t happened, I would have continued the same way I was and wouldn’t have improved. That tour made me think how I approach my international career and do I just want to be a pushover everytime I play Test cricket. That’s a decision I had to make,” he added.
Virat Kohli has also opened up that few practice sessions with Sachin Tendulkar and discussion with Ravi Shastri had helped him to revamp himself.