Virat Kohli to be demoted after horror run in T20 World Cup? Dinesh Karthik shares his views

Virat Kohli's dismal performance with the bat in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2024 has become a major point. The former India skipper has failed to live up to the expectations so far in the tournament.

Before the T20 World Cup, he enjoyed a stellar campaign in this year's Indian Premier League and had finished the tournament as the highest run-scorer. While no other batter could even touch the 600-run mark in IPL 2024, Virat Kohli scored an impressive 741 runs with the help of one century and five half-centuries.

With Virat Kohli in red-hot form, expectations were sky high from him. However, the right-handed batsman has failed to perform well so far. The Indian team management decided to promote him as an opener for the tournament after his success in the IPL but he has not really managed to justify the move so far.

In the group stage, he could not reach the double-digit mark with the bat in three outings, scoring only 5 runs. He scored 1 and 5 runs against Ireland and Pakistan respectively before being out for a duck against the USA. His form in the Super 8 was not very promising either.

The right-handed batsman played knocks of 24 and 37 against Afghanistan and Bangladesh respectively but did not look at his best. In the crucial Super 8 game against Australia, he could not even open his account and was out for zero.

Virat Kohli will come good: Dinesh Karthik

With Virat Kohli struggling at the top of the batting order, there have been calls from several quarters to reposition him to his familiar slot at number three. However, former India batsman Dinesh Karthik has a different opinion.

Replying to a fan's question who asked him whether Kohli should start batting at number three again, Dinesh Karthik said that his former teammate's position should not be changed. He also said that Kohli is batting with utmost intent and backed him to regain his form soon. Dinesh Karthik further stated that nothing should be changed about the current Indian team at the moment.

"No, no, no. Patience, patience. He is batting with the utmost intent that any opener can have. Nothing should change about this Indian team. They are doing perfectly in terms of batting order, how they have used their resources. Virat Kohli will come good, I can tell you. Don't worry. He's Virat Kohli," said Dinesh Karthik in a video posted by Cricbuzz.

Meanwhile, India have booked their spot in the semifinal after an unbeaten run in the competition so far. They will be taking on defending champions England in the semifinal on Thursday (June 26).