ENG vs IND 2018: Virender Sehwag Backs Virat Kohli To Break Rahul Dravid's Record

Former India opener Virender Sehwag has backed Virat Kohli to break Rahul Dravid’s record in the ongoing England vs India series.

Kohli has led the team from the very front in the series. It was mainly because of his brilliance with the bat that India is still in contention to win the series. In the series-opener, his splendid knocks of 149 and 51 had put India on the verge of the victory. But lack of support from other batsmen saw the team lose the cliffhanger by 31 runs.

Kohli failed to do much in the second and as a result, India ended up suffering an innings defeat. However, India’s captain fantastic bounced back in style in the do-or-die game at Trent Bridge. He scored 97 and 103, helping India thrash England by 203 runs and win the game to claw their way back in the series.

As a result of those knocks, Kohli has already piled up 440 runs in the series.

The run-scoring spree has already help Kohli go past Mohammad Azharuddin to become the India skipper with most runs in a Test series in England. Azharuddin had scored 426 runs during the tour of 1990. And Kohli is now in line to break another recored.

With two more matches to go in the series, he is now closing on the tally of highest runs scored in a single Test series in England by an India. Currently, former captains Dravid and Sunil Gavaskar are ahead of Kohli with 602 and 542 runs respectively in a series of Tests.

And Sehwag is confident Kohli can break the record.

“It’s not a danger to the greats (Rahul Dravid and Sunil Gavaskar). Instead, it’s a news of immense happiness if someone is about to break their record. It’s similar to the joy I felt when Karun Nair became the second triple-centurion for India after me. Gavaskar and Dravid too would feel the same way if and when Kohli breaks their records. I myself want him to do so because it will mean that he scores runs which in turn would culminate in India winning the series,” Sehwag told IndiaTV.

With the conditions for the next two games set to be batting friendly, Sehwag said it would be even easier for the in-form Kohli to deliver with the bat.

“He made 97 and 103 in the last Test on a bowler-friendly pitch and therefore when he gets favourable batting conditions in the next two Tests, we can expect him to score not just a ton but a double-century. He has already hit 6 double hundreds in a year. So I expect him to score a double hundred and even possibly a triple as that is the only thing missing from his CV,” he said.

Sehwag also made it clear that other players need to contribute if India are eyeing the series win.

“A single player might be able to win you games in the shorter formats but in Tests it is impossible. So to win the series at least 4-5 Indians will have to perform well. That is why whenever we go on tours we emphasise on partnerships. The teams should always focus on building partnerships in both bowling and batting.”

The fourth Test will get underway on August 30 at Ageas Bowl, Southampton.