In the first match of the three-T20I series against Australia on Tuesday (September 20) in Mohali, Virat Kohli was dismissed for two runs off seven balls and former coach Ravi Shastri argued that Kohli could have taken his time before trying to hit a big shot.
Kohli came out to bat in the third over of the innings after Josh Hazlewood dismissed Rohit Sharma. After a few dot balls, the star batter tried to clear the mid-on fielder but could not achieve the necessary elevation, resulting in an easy catch to the fielder.
The former Indian captain suffered a rare failure against an opposition he has scored 451 runs in 11 T20Is at a remarkable 64.43 apiece.
According to Shastri, the 33-year-old should focus on running the ones and twos in the first few overs before hitting the big shots later in his innings.
"The kind of game he has got, there is no need for that kind of shots that early. He has got to get in and run those extra runs. He has got a hundred on his back and he shouldn't waste good form. He needs to give himself time in the middle.” Shastri told Star Sports.
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The former cricketer emphasized that a player of Virat’s stature should cease to give away his form after scoring a hundred
"A player of that quality doesn't need to go in the air that much, especially on tracks like this. At his best, he is a superb place of the ball, he is a fine placer of the ball. He can hit those big shots in the latter half of the innings. He can churn them out at will, once he is in," he added further.
On Tuesday, India despite posting a steep 209-run target on the back of blistering knocks from Hardik Pandya (71* off 30 balls) and KL Rahul (55 off 35 balls) lost the match by 4 wickets.
Cameron Green playing his 2nd T20I for Australia smashed 61 runs off just 30 balls and Matthew Wade’s fiery (45* off 21 balls). Owing to these knocks, the visitors chased down the target with 4 balls to spare.
The 2nd T20I will be played on Friday (September 23) in Nagpur.
(STAR SPORTS INPUTS)
