ENG vs IND 2018: Ian Chappell Hails Virat Kohli's Dominating Batting Performance In Edgbaston

Legendary cricketer Ian Chappell lauded the performance of Virat Kohli in the first England vs India Test. Chappell also compared Kohli innings to Stan McCabe’s epic double hundred during the 1938 Ashes.

Kohli’s heroic knock in Edgbaston has pretty much overshadowed the result of the game as well as his teammates’ poor batting performance. Such was Kohli’s dominance with the bat that the game eventually became a competition between Kohli and England. While other Indian batsmen struggled even to time their shots, Kohli looked class apart throughout.

He scored 200 runs in the game including a splendid 149 in the first innings. On a pitch where the ball was creating all sorts of trouble for the batsmen, Kohli held firm.  India were 100 for 5 and were looking set to concede a massive lead to the hosts. However, Kohli’s century helped India post 274 in reply to England’s 287.

Kohli once again top-scored for his side in the second innings, scoring a fighting 51. But lack of support from other end once again saw his heroic effort going in vain. The likes of Murali Vijay, KL Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane all failed to fire as England won the low-scoring game by 31 runs. India were all out for 162 while chasing 194.

But Kohli has been garnering praise from all over for his stunning performances and Chappell also lauded the India skipper. The Australian legend feels that Kohli ‘survived’ the Anderson test. When India toured England back in 2014, the English pacer has dismissed Kohli four times.

“Having survived Anderson’s challenging examination Kohli went on to dominate the Indian first innings, scoring 82 of the 91 runs accumulated for the last two wickets.

“It was a similar dominance near the end of Stan McCabe’s glorious double-century at Trent Bridge in 1938 that caused captain Don Bradman to summon his players onto the balcony with the words; “You will never see anything like this again,” Chappell wrote in his column.

Chappell further said that Hardik Pandya could end India’s long search for a pace-bowling allrounder.

“India’s search for a seam-bowling allrounder is still a work in progress. But Hardik Pandya displayed determination and discipline to go with his undoubted skills in an important partnership with Kohli,” Chappell wrote in his column for ESPN Cricinfo.

“Perhaps a move to No 6 would further bolster his batting confidence. And if he can also profit from watching Stokes’ efforts with the ball, this could be a defining series for the talented all-rounder,” Chappell assessed.

Not one to mince his words, Chappell found the slip catching from both teams shoddy.

“Both England and India were sloppy in the slips. A combination of poor technique and faulty alignment were to blame for the shoddy work. One reason for both sides dropping catches is that the fielders are standing too close to each other,” Chappell wrote.