Shoaib Akhtar Has Urged Former Cricketers To Stop Criticising Virat Kohli

Shoaib Akhtar, a former Pakistan fast bowler, has asked ex-cricketers to refrain from criticising Indian icon Virat Kohli for his poor form. He also advised everyone to treat the former India captain with the deference he so richly deserves.

Kohli, 33, has had to deal with a lot of criticism over the last two seasons because of his dismal batting history. He also had a disappointing IPL 2022 season, scoring 341 runs at an average of 22.73 and a strike rate of 115.99 in 16 games.

He Is The Greatest Player of All Time: Shoaib Akhtar

Former cricketers such as Virender Sehwag, Daniel Vettori, and Ian Bishop have criticised the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) batters’ performance in the IPL 2022.

“Before passing statements, people should understand that small kids look up to them. Say good things about Virat Kohli. Give him the respect he deserves. As a Pakistani, I am saying that he is the greatest player of all time. I want him to score 110 centuries in international cricket. I want him to play till the age of 45,” Akhtar told Sportskeeda.

Advising the Indian batter not to be concerned about his current condition, Akhtar claimed that the adversity is preparing him for the tremendous run ahead.

“This tough situation is preparing you for 110 centuries. People are writing you off, tweeting against you. If you tweet about Diwali, you are criticised. People tweet about your wife and kid. When you lose the World Cup, you are heavily criticised. Things cannot get any worse. Just go out there, and show everyone who Virat Kohli is,” Akhtar added.

Kohli hasn’t hit a century since November 2019.  He has stepped down as T20I and Test captain in recent months, and he was fired as ODI captain. He also stepped down as RCB captain at the end of the last IPL season.

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