We Are Going To Miss Virat Kohli As A Batsman: Pravin Amre

Former India cricketer, Pravin Amre feels that the team is going to miss Virat Kohli badly in the next three Test matches against Australia. The Indian skipper has returned home after the first Test as he has been granted paternity leave by the BCCI to attend the birth of his child with his wife and Bollywood actress, Anushka Sharma.

Amre believes that losing Virat Kohli is a massive blow for the team, especially after the horrific show in the second innings in Adelaide where the batting order collapsed to the Aussie pacers to register India’s lowest ever Test score. Kohli was on his way to a first-innings hundred in Adelaide before being run out for 74.

Amre says that the Indian captain was pivotal in their triumph a couple of years ago- the right-hander averaged 40 on his previous tour down under. The 52-year-old reckons that India will miss him more as a batsman in the middle-order than as a captain.

“Definitely we are going to miss Virat Kohli as a batsman. During the last tour, we created history by winning the (Test) series in Australia. The role played by Virat as a batsman, and not just as captain, was very important. He is India’s run machine,” Pravin Amre told Sportskeeda.

Opportunity for KL Rahul to show his mettle: Pravin Amre

The former batsman opines that KL Rahul could get an opportunity in place of Kohli. Amre points out that since losing his place from the Test side about a year ago, Rahul has been in thunderous form in limited-overs cricket, and on the back of it he has made a return to the Test squad. Amre, who averaged 42 in 11 Tests for India, asserts that the Kings XI Punjab skipper is hungry for a chance in the longer format, and prove his mettle to everyone.

The side led by the interim skipper, Ajinkya Rahane will make wholesale of changes for the Boxing Day Test; apart from replacing Virat Kohli and Mohammed Shami, opener Prithvi Shaw and wicket-keeper, Wriddhiman Saha are also expected to be dropped.

“This is an opportunity for KL Rahul, because he also lost his place from Team India (Test team). I think this is the biggest opportunity for him. We all know how good he has been with the white ball. He was the highest run-scorer in the IPL, getting Orange Cap. He is hungry to show that he belongs to Team India(Test team) as an opener. He can’t be sitting outside. And so, this is his opportunity to show his mettle,” Amre added.

Also Read: What’s Indian Cricket Without Virat Kohli? – Monty Panesar