Virat Kohli Rates His Competitors A Touch Above Him

Virat Kohli became the first player to average above 50 in all three formats of the game following his breathtaking knock of 235 at the Wankhede. Along with Virat Kohli, there are three other batsmen who are considered in an elite class of batsmen and are predicted to be future greats. The list consists of Steve Smith, Joe Root and Kane Williamson. These three batsmen along with Virat Kohli occupy the first four positions in the ICC Test rankings are battling it out for the top spot.

Kohli believes that the comparisons are to be drawn by fans and the game itself benefits from the competition. Kohli was quoted saying, “I think it is more for the fans to put us in a group of young players coming up in world cricket. It is a healthy thing and great for the game, as well as a great topic for debate. It is great to know that you are part of a bunch of 4-5 players who are taking world cricket forward.”

“As an individual, I don’t focus on those things. Honestly, it is a massive distraction. When you are doing good, you feel like looking at the rankings you wanna see what people are talking about and where I am in the race. But when you are not doing well, the same thing backfires and you feel addicted to it. I totally move away from it”.

The Indian skipper settled the debate once it for all and rated the other three a touch above him.

“To me, all these players are world class and I always rate them above me, in Test cricket especially, because of the way they have performed in the last one or two seasons and I understand my limitations.”

“In limited overs, yes, I have been performing really well, but I never try to outdo them in the longer format. I understand what I need to do for my team. My aim has never been to go above Joe or Steve or Kane. There is equal respect amongst us, David (Warner) included. I really admire the way all these guys play, and the healthy competition should go on for a few years”.

Virat also spoke good about England’s talisman Joe Root and claimed to be a big fan of the right handed batsman.

“Joe is one of my favourite batsmen in world cricket along with David Warner and Kane Williamson. I haven’t spoken with him a lot but I admire the way he plays. He is an all format batsman and that’s something I really appreciate. He has always been a strong Test player.”

Here are the current Test numbers of the four:

*Updated until 20th December 2016.