India skipper Virat Kohli hasn't been at his best in the ongoing England tour. He has batted in four innings, including the first innings of the ongoing third Test, and hasn't hit a half-century yet.
After a duck in Nottingham, Kohli scored 42 & 20 at Lord's while he fell for just 7 in India’s first essay at Headingley.
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Amid his failures, former Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq has advised Kohli to stop thinking as captain when he goes out to bat.
“Everyone knows that Virat Kohli is the No. 1 player in the world. His touch as a class player is missing so far. If he wants to come out of this rut, Kohli needs to play his strokes and go back to his natural game. He is putting too much pressure on himself,” Inzamam said in a video posted on his Youtube channel.
“My suggestion to Kohli will be - stop thinking like captain when you go out to bat. He needs to remember that he is Virat Kohli. He needs to bat just the way Virat Kohi does. Kohli must keep all the other stuff related to captaincy aside when he bats. If he goes in thinking as captain every time, his natural fluency and power gets affected, which can be seen. Yes, it’s a big series but Kohli must remember that he has performed on the big stage before. But he seems to have gone into his shell and needs to come out of it,” he added.
Opting to bat first, India got bowled out for a paltry 78 on the opening day at Headingley. None of the batsmen managed to touch the 20-run mark.
In reply, the hosts piled up a mammoth 423/8 at stumps on Day 2, extending their lead to a massive 345 runs. Skipper Joe Root once again led the charge with the bat, scoring a scintillating 121 – his third century in the ongoing series.
While Inzamam lauded Root for his stunning hundred, he feels the visitors also have players who can play the long innings.
"England has one Joe Root, India have many players who can play big knocks. But Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara are consuming too many balls and then get out to good balls. They need to start attacking a bit. If Rohit Sharma starts to play freely, he too can be more effective and put pressure back on England,” he opined.
