Virat Kohli had a poor outing in the T20 World Cup 2024 group stage thus far. The brilliant Indian batter managed 5 runs across three innings as he opened the batting with captain Rohit Sharma.
He began with a one versus Ireland and then had two single-digit scores – four and a duck. In his new role as opener, Kohli threw away wickets in Group A in an attempt to break the powerplay constraints.
Despite his failings in the group stage, there is no doubt about his place in the playing XI; such is Kohli’s stature that when things get rough, he is the one you will turn to for a rescue mission.
However, former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has backed Virat Kohli to fire in big matches in the upcoming Super 8s matches against Afghanistan, Australia, and Bangladesh.
“He knows how to stand up in big matches, isn’t it? That’s what makes him really, really special. He’s a special player and I’m sure he’s going to put his hand up and say OK, I’m going to do this for Team India and when the time comes, especially the big matches, we always have seen from Virat Kohli that he performs,” Pathan said on Star Sports.
Kohli was in incredible form ahead of the T20 World Cup and won the Orange Cap in IPL 2024 by scoring 741 runs.
“Just wait and watch..” Irfan Pathan supports Virat Kohli to come good
The great batsman reimagined his T20 game and adopted an aggressive style of cricket by incorporating smashes such as slog sweeps into his arsenal. However, the batting wizard has failed to reproduce the same stats in the T20 World Cup group stage, and he is currently experiencing a slump.
Pathan also pointed out that the pitch at the New York stadium hampered Kohli’s style of play, as it didn’t allow him to play his shots freely, but that won’t be the case on Caribbean soil.
“Just wait and watch, the slog sweep will come out now. He will definitely use those shots because, look, those conditions in New York. But now things will be different and you’ll see a real Virat Kohli coming to the fore,” Pathan added.
India will play Afghanistan in Barbados on June 20, 2024, in their first Super 8s stage.
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