Virat Kohli is one of the most successful batsmen in the world and one of the reasons he has achieved such greatness is due to his meticulous planning, says Robin Uthappa.
Uthappa feels sometimes the Indian captain tends to surprise not only the bowlers but even those watching the game, with his unpredictability in batting.
“When you watch him bat from one version of the game to another, you can see how clearly, he has planned for each version of the game,” Uthappa said on the Cricket Connected Show on Star Sports.
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“In one-day cricket, he almost never hits the ball in the air, unless it’s completely required during the course of the game. Similarly, in Test cricket, he is only going to hit the ball in the air once he has passed 120 or 150. But in T20 cricket, he pulls out the big shots and his orthodox big shots that you don’t even think that he will play it, because you have seen him play so much of good cricket along the ground in ODI & Test cricket that you don’t anticipate him playing that,” Uthappa pointed out.
The out-of-favor India batsman then mentioned that this ability of Kohli to switch between formats keeps the bowlers on their toes. They too have to plan for the India captain according to each format.
“Suddenly, the bowlers have to plan for each version of the game. For me, someone like Virat, the way he approaches each version of the game is just phenomenal. It’s kind of inspiring, like what must be going through that mind for him to be able to concede those ideas and say, ‘Ok, these are my shots for T20 cricket, these are my shots for one-day cricket, and these are my shots for 5-day cricket’. It’s just amazing,” he stated further.
Robin Uthappa also heaped praises on Rohit Sharma apart from Virat Kohli and said, “When I look at Rohit Sharma, I feel he has got eternity to play a ball. It just baffles you like where does he create that time. It’s amazing to watch and so effortless."
