Will Virat Kohli travel to England, or will he not? Have we seen the last of him in red-ball cricket? Does he still have the game to score runs in difficult conditions in England? How tough will it be for India to deal with this void if he decides to give up Test cricket and move on?
The truth is that Kohli hasn’t been the same Test player he once was over the three or four years. In Australia, the bowlers had his number, with Kohli time and again making the same mistake outside the off stump. Except the Perth hundred, it was a painful series for him, and it is essential that we recognise that he hasn’t played any red-ball cricket since. Expecting him to be successful in England was based more on hope than anything else.
And yet, we want him to go. That’s because he is Virat Kohli. Because he has defied the odds in the past and rediscovered himself. He is still the most hard-working, and if he decided to go, it was expected that he’d strive the hardest to make it count. His work ethic and his discipline are such that they give us hope that he could overcome his red-ball slump one final time.
Also Read: Indian cricketers can best utilise short break for England-tour preparation
Also, with Rohit Sharma not there, his presence would be key in the change room. For a young captain, he could be the sounding board. Having been to England multiple times and experienced all kinds of emotions, Kohli could be Shubman Gill’s go-to man. That’s what India would miss in the dressing room, making it a very inexperienced one.
Is there a chance of a rethink? Will Kohli reconsider and can the BCCI persuade him to go? At this stage, it looks unlikely. He could have made up his mind, and that would be that. Having said that, in sport, it is never say never. And with Kohli, we will always hope.
For the greatest Test batter that India has seen in the last decade, we don’t want the end to be like this. Not in failure. But then, that’s sport and it could well be that we saw Kohli the Test player for the last time in Sydney last January.
For More Sports Related Information Click Here