It Is Yet To Be Seen If This Will Be The Last IPL Or The Last World Cup For Them - Shoaib Akhtar Expects Pressure On Rohit Sharma And Virat Kohli
Published - 04 Jun 2022, 01:33 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 12:08 AM
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Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar accepts there will be pressure on Team India captain Rohit Sharma and batter Virat Kohli heading into the 2022 T20 World Cup. The duo have been well shy of runs in the recent past and are frantically keeping watch for a run of form.
In the recently finished Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022, Virat Kohli scored 341 runs at an average of 22.73. Except for a 50 in the team’s last league game, the former skipper didn’t have a lot to show for across the competition.
Rohit Sharma likewise experienced a severe IPL crusade with the bat in Mumbai Indians’ tenth spot finish in the points table. The MI skipper recorded just 268 runs at an average of 19.14, which is his least across 15 seasons.
The Pressure Will Keep On Mounting On Rohit Sharma And Virat Kohli: Shoaib Akhtar
Taking note of that the strain to perform adds as the player heads into his twilight years, Akhtar said in an interaction with Harbhajan Singh on Sportskeeda:
“It is yet to be seen if this will be the last IPL or the last World Cup for Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma but, there will be pressure on them to maintain their form. In the latter part of the career, the pressure keeps on mounting. For instance, Sachin was constantly asked about being unable to score a hundred.”
Virat Kohli And Rohit Sharma Will Be Hoping To Lead India To T20 World Cup Win: Harbhajan Singh
Harbhajan Singh accepts the pair will be watching out to leave an imprint at the T20 World Cup in Australia. Recognizing Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s unfortunate form with the bat, the former India off-spinner said:
“They did not have a good IPL season. They will be hoping that they lead the team to a win in the T20 World Cup. With the next generation coming up, it can’t be said for certain which player will get opportunities.”
The Men In Blue have a large number of T20 matches against South Africa, West Indies, Ireland, and England in a bid to get ready for the competition. Nonetheless, senior players including Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been rested for the T20I series at home against the Proteas. The five-match series is set to begin on June 9 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.
Virat Kohli’s journey for his 71st International hundred approaches three years. The former skipper last scored a ton in India’s first pink-ball Test at home against Bangladesh in November, 2019. From that point forward, while contributing with the bat in patches, he has never been fundamentally near the three-figure mark.
Virat Kohli was the first Indian to score a hundred in pink-ball Test and he is additionally the first Indian to score fifty in pink-ball Test abroad.
Shoaib Akhtar Hopes To See Virat Kohli Breaking Sachin Tendulkar’s Record
Hoping to see the ace batter break Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 100 centuries by the time he retires, Akhtar said:
“In the final stages of your career, it becomes inevitable or your responsibility to perform in every match. There are a lot of expectations on them. God knows what is going to happen to Kohli, but it is my wish that he scores 110 centuries and keep his goals big.
But at the moment, his confidence and morale must have come down. The only way it will increase, is by performing for India.”
The Delhi-born batter has scored 27 hundreds in Test cricket and 43 in the ODI format across his astonishing career.
Also Read: IPL 2022: ‘I Believe Hardik Pandya Is A 4D Player Now’: Former Indian Selector
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Harbhajan Singh ICC T20 World Cup 2022 India National Cricket Team IPL 2022 Rohit Sharma Sachin Tendulkar Shoaib Akhtar Virat Kohli
