IND vs SL: "Despite Having That Big-Hitting Ability, He Is Able To Control That" - Sanjay Bangar On Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli, according to Sanjay Bangar, excels at being in complete command of the situation when playing in the middle of the order.

In the third One-Day International between India and Sri Lanka on Sunday, January 15, in Thiruvananthapuram, Kohli blazed an unbeaten 166 off 110 balls. Dasun Shanaka and company faced a formidable 391-run target from the Men in Blue, who ultimately prevailed by a huge margin of 317 runs.

IPL 2023 | New Zealand tour of India 2023 | Dream11 Prediction | Fantasy Cricket Tips | Cricket Match Prediction Today | Cricket News | Cricket Live Score | Australia tour of India 2023

Sanjay Bangar Hails Virat Kohli’s Control Over His Abilities

When questioned about Virat Kohli’s capacity to pace his innings during a conversation on Star Sports, Bangar responded:

“The longer he plays, the specialty of his batting is that he is fully in control of the situation. To stop himself from playing the big shots despite having them, you can see how much control he has over his abilities.”

IPL 2023 | India National Cricket Team | IND vs NZ 2023 | India vs New Zealand 2023 | IND vs AUS 2023 | India vs Australia 2023

Before reaching the three-figure level, Kohli typically avoids playing huge smashes, the former Indian batting coach said, noting:

“He never tries to play the big shots before getting to a hundred. He tries to hit boundaries until then. As soon as he scores a hundred, the last 30-35 balls he plays, his strike rate remains more than 200.”

Despite having the capacity to smash maximums, Bangar commended the Indian batting backbone for exercising restraint:

“His shot-making ability is close to any finisher and it is a special thing that despite having that big-hitting ability, he is able to control that and paces his innings accordingly.”

With the aid of 10 fours and a six, Kohli scored his hundred runs off of just 85 deliveries. His subsequent 66 runs, which included seven sixes and three fours, were scored off only 25 balls.

Technique Plays A Huge Role In Virat Kohli’s Amazing Consistency: Sanjay Bangar

Further questioned about Virat Kohli’s eight sixes during his innings, the highest in his ODI career, Bangar responded:

“I feel technique plays a huge role in his amazing consistency. Despite being so tired, he was doing the early setup in the last 20-25 balls. He was standing making a huge base and when he was expecting slower deliveries, he was using his feet slightly. He sticks to whatever he plans to do, and because of that he continues to be consistent.”

In ODI cricket, Kohli’s undefeated 166 was his second-highest total. In the course of his century, he passed Mahela Jayawardene to move up to the fifth-highest run-scorer in the 50-over format, leaving him only three shy of Sachin Tendulkar’s record total of 49 ODI tonnes.

Also Read: IND vs SL: “Runs Aren’t Coming But He Is Looking Good” – Sanjay Manjrekar On Rohit Sharma’s Hundred Drought

Virat Kohli | Rohit Sharma | Rishabh Pant | KL Rahul | Suryakumar Yadav | Sanju Samson | Shreyas Iyer | Yuzvendra Chahal | Jasprit Bumrah