Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif has yet again made a controversial remark on Virat Kohli ahead of India vs. Pakistan Super Four match in the ongoing Asia Cup 2022, which will be played on Sunday (September 4) at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai.
Latif claimed that Kohli can never become a player like Suryakumar Yadav or Rohit Sharma, and he even went on to claim that the right-hander is one of the main reasons behind Royal Challenger Bangalore’s (RCB) failure to win the IPL title over the years.
Rashid Latif said on Pakistani YouTube show 'Game on Hai': “Virat kabhi Suryakumar nahi ban sakte, kabhi Rohit Sharma nahi ban sakte. Unke khelne ka tarika RCB mein bhi same hai tabhi wo kabhi champion nahi bane. (Virat can never become Suryakumar Yadav. He can never become Rohit Sharma. His playing style for Bangalore is also the same and that's why they could never become champions).”
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He didn’t stop there, as the former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter slammed Kohli for his playing style in T20 cricket, saying MS Dhoni might start slow, but he was able to make up for it with sixes, but the former Indian skipper isn’t able to do that as well.
Latif further added, “Take the example of MS Dhoni. Even if he is playing dot balls, he will be able to make up for that with a few sixes but Kohli can't. So there really shouldn't be any debate on whether Kohli played fast or slow against Hong Kong. That is his natural game. He mostly goes for the big shots after he has crossed 30-35 from whatever I've followed IPL or Indian cricket. Rohit Sharma is one of them who looks to take advantage of the powerplay and then tries to take the game till the end.”
The former Pakistani cricketer also claimed that Kohli was never a good batter in T20Is, but said there is no match of the Indian batter in ODI cricket. He signed off by saying, “Virat Kohli kabhi T20 ka behtareen player nahi tha. His average was good but his strike rate... We can compare him to Steve Smith, Kane Williamson, Joe Root, Babar Azam. But none of them have been great match-winners in T20Is.
In ODIs, there's nobody even close to Virat Kohli. Or for that matter even Smith, Williamson, Babar Azam. There are three phases in ODI cricket. 1-10 overs the first, then 11-40 and then the final overs. It's a different game. You need the most amount of skill in ODI cricket. Virat Kohli plays like that.”
