I Wouldn't Blame Virat Kohli For Lack Of Runs And He Doesn't Go Down In My Opinion: Farokh Engineer

Former Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Farokh Engineer backed Indian skipper Virat Kohli at a time where is going through a lean patch with the bat. Kohli started the England series with a golden duck against his nemesis, James Anderson, in Nottingham and got the scores of 42 and 20 at Lord’s where India won by 151 runs. 

Kohli has nicked behind the stumps in all of his dismissals so far in this tour, and England bowlers are bowling him just outside off-stump to induce his edge by forcing him to push the ball. 

Virat Kohli is still a great player: Farokh Engineer

Engineer said that after all the Indian skipper is a human and he is bound to commit mistakes so whether he scores a hundred or not, he will remain a top-class batsman. 

“I wouldn’t blame him. He is still a great player. And he doesn’t go down in my opinion. He is still getting 40s and 50s. He is a class player,” Engineer told Sports Tak. 

Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli (Image Credit: Twitter)

“Well, a player of Virat Kohli’s calibre, every time he walks onto the pitch, we expect a hundred from him. Virat is human after all. We human beings make mistakes. 

“There is a lot of elements of luck also when you play and miss. You either miss or get an edge. Unfortunately, he has been getting the nicks and getting caught out,” he added. 

Kohli’s counterpart Joe Root is in marvellous form with the bat, the England skipper has accumulated 386 runs from four innings with two hundreds and a fifty he leads the scoring charts. 

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Engineer said Kohli is one of the finest batsmen in the world and acknowledged that the Indian skipper is getting tough competition from Root.

Virat Kohli and Joe Root
Virat Kohli and Joe Root (Image Credit: Twitter)

“He is one of the finest batsmen in the world today. I would say ‘one of them’ because he has been getting the runs that he is used to getting. Joe Root, on the other hand, is getting a lot of runs,” Engineer said.

Virat Kohli’s aggression is good for Indian cricket: Farokh Engineer

On the final day of the Lord’s Test, there were some incidents that turned into heated moments. Kohli was celebrating each English batsman’s wicket with a lot of emotions. The skipper was also seen in some verbal spats with Ollie Robinson when the latter came to bat. 

Engineer applauded Kohli for his aggressive style of captaincy and he also noted it was something that he himself started during his playing days. 

“His aggression is good for Indian cricket because I am the one who started giving it back to them. I am proud of people like Virat, they are standing up to these Englishmen and giving it back to them exactly where it hurts them,” Engineer mentioned.

Team India leads the five-match series 1-0 and Leeds will host the third Test between England and India on August 25. 

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Also Read: Virat Kohli Should Tone Down A Bit So His Team Can Relax: Michael Holding