As Virat Kohli made his long-awaited Ranji Trophy return after 13 years, former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif made a daring revelation about the India batting icon’s primary flaw. Kaif recalled Kohli’s last Ranji encounter against Uttar Pradesh, which occurred in 2012.
Virat Kohli is currently competing in Delhi’s final group match of the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2024-25 versus Railways at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. The former Indian skipper hopes to put his dismal form behind him by returning to first-class cricket after more than a decade.
The right-handed batsman had an awful 2024 season, especially in Test cricket, as he was one of the biggest flops on India’s recent Test tour to Australia, where he could manage only 190 runs throughout the nine innings, despite a century in the first Test in Perth.
The weakness Virat Kohli had earlier is still there: Mohammad Kaif
Former India batter Mohammad Kaif stated that Bhuvneshwar Kumar exploited Virat Kohli’s weakness outside the off-stump in both innings of his final Ranji encounter, which still haunts the 36-year-old. Bhuvneshwar Kumar replaced Kohli for 14 and 43 in the Ranji match between Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.
Kaif caught Kohli in the slips during the first innings. Kohli was battling with the same issue throughout the Australia trip, and Kaif couldn’t help but be surprised that Virat is still struggling with the same weakness after all these years.
“I could not believe that our match against Delhi in 2012 was Kohli’s last Ranji Trophy match. The weakness he had earlier is still there. The way Bhuvneshwar Kumar got him out twice, I cannot believe that the same weakness is still there. The way he was getting out in Australia, he got out in the same way in that Ranji match,” Mohammad Kaif said on his YouTube Channel.
Kaif blamed Kohli’s tight bottom-hand grip for his struggles with the outside off-stump delivery. Despite this, Kohli achieved incredible success in his career that is commendable, said the former Indian batter.
“Despite having a weakness against outside off-stump balls due to his tight bottom hand, the stature he achieved is commendable. He has 50 centuries in ODI cricket,” Kohli stated.
Virat Kohli will get his form back in Ranji Trophy: Mohammad Kaif
Kaif also anticipated Kohli’s return to the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 would help the right-handed batter restore form ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Before the renowned tournament, Kohli will play a three-match ODI series against England at home.
Kaif signed off by saying, “Playing a Ranji Trophy match is a win-win for everyone. Virat Kohli will get some practice, and if he scores runs and gets back to form, it will benefit India a lot. So, we pray that he does well and spends some time at the crease. We hope he gets the kind of success he got in the 2023 ODI World Cup in the 2025 Champions Trophy as well.”
Did you know that I was on the field when Virat Kohli played Ranji Trophy last time? Here’s the story from that game.#CricketWithKaif11 pic.twitter.com/eRTE0xesGh
— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) January 29, 2025
After the Ranji Trophy match for Delhi, Virat Kohli will be seen in action for India as they take on England in three ODIs. And that will be followed by the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai for the Indian team.
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