Former India cricketers Mohammad Kaif and Irfan Pathan took a dig at experts who are harping about Virat Kohli’s strike rate in T20Is and the ongoing IPL 2024. They used the example of Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Travis Head’s knock in his team’s recent match against RR to point out the hypocrisy.
Virat Kohli is currently second in the Orange Cap race with 500 runs in 10 matches, packed with a ton (113*) and four half-centuries. The distance between him and Orange Cap holder Ruturaj Gaikwad (506) is meager and Kohli could go into the lead once again.
Virat Kohli was also named in the Indian T20 World Cup 2024 squad as well, despite questions hanging about his strike rate in the format. Kohli has a strike rate of 133.94 in 386 T20 matches.
In T20Is, Kohli’s strike rate is 138.15 in 117 matches, and in all IPL, Kohli scores his runs at 131.02 strike rate. But in the ongoing IPL 2024 season, the strike rate of the RCB opener has jumped to 147.49. He has also hit 20 sixes and 46 fours thus far.
Former India cricketers Irfan Pathan and Mohammad Kaif decided to rush to Kohli's defense and silenced his critics. They did so by using Travis Head as an example. The SRH opener, in the latest IPL match against RR, scored 58 in 44 balls. The pair said that if it was Kohli, then everyone would have been talking about his strike rate.
"According to his ability, you have never seen him play like this. No matter what you say that there was good bowling and everything, but every cricketer should be treated equally," Irfan said on Star Sports.
Kaif, visibly impressed by Irfan's observation, added, "You are right if this was Virat Kohli, I can guarantee that people would have said only 58 runs in 44 balls? What is this? They would say it is low and there would be debates about his strike rate. But I believe that this was a good inning by Head."
"But if there was Virat Kohli instead, people would have stuck to the strike rate but here we are talking about taking responsibility for the team's victory, so please treat everyone equally," Irfan concluded.
RCB take on GT in their upcoming IPL 2024 fixture, on Saturday.
