Ojha lauded Rohit and Dravid for giving Kohli the space he needs.
Former India spinner Pragyan Ojha said that there is nothing wrong with Virat Kohli’s batting technique or the way he approaches the game, but maybe mentally he is exhausted and felt that India captain Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid are doing a good thing by resting him here and there.
Virat Kohli is racing against the clock to get back into shape for the T20 World Cup. Since his last century in November 2019, the modern-day run machine appears to have lost its magic touch and runs have become hard to come by.
While he continued to score half-centuries and help the team, in the past year or so, those have dried up as well and he is struggling to hold onto his place in the team and doubts have been cast over his spot in the Men in the Blue side for the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia.
Pragyan Ojha, in an interview with cricket journalist and anchor Jamie Alter during an episode of his chat show on Glance, spoke about what’s wrong with Virat Kohli.
“See, with cricket it’s not about mathematics that two plus two is four. You will fail. That’s the beauty of sport. This is Virat Kohli we’re talking about. His conversion rate has been tremendous. He used to go to bat and get hundreds and the bar was set so high that now we don’t talk about Virat getting a 30 or 40 … uska 50 bhi ek failure count hota hai because the bar is 100.
When you look at Virat’s batting, it is not about the skill, that he’s not timing it well, or that his fitness has taken a beating. He’s just there, and I think he is better than others with his work ethic and discipline. The only thing is that maybe mentally he’s a little caught up somewhere. Maybe that’s why he’s been regularly taking breaks.
We have to understand that the last couple of years were very challenging with the bio bubbles and all, and you don’t know how it affects someone individually. What Virat has done for Indian cricket, he’s getting the right kind of backing, but personally, I feel that he should have been there in the West Indies because this was a great opportunity for him to make a comeback and get some great runs,” Ojha told Jamie Alter.
He further said that Virat Kohli might not take many breaks in his career once he comes back after the West Indies series. He also praised Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma for handling Virat Kohli with care.
“By come back, I am talking about getting runs. Ek baar us tareeke ke batsman ko runs lag gaye, then things change drastically. And I am sure, as I am hearing, that after the West Indies tour he will be going for all the series thereon. I don’t think he will take any breaks, which is a great thing. He should be doing that.
That is why Rohit and Rahul bhai are being very, very careful and giving him breaks on and off. That time to settle down. It is not about Virat’s skills anymore. It is about his mental space,” Ojha signed off.