India successfully won their first Super 8 clash of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 against Rashid Khan’s Afghanistan, after Suryakumar Yadav’s important half-century and brilliant bowling in the second half of the game. It was a rock-solid performance from the Indian team, except for one concern.
Virat Kohli’s abysmal form in the ongoing tournament has continued after an underwhelming performance against the Afghans.
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After skipper Rohit Sharma’s early wicket, Kohli held the crease with the fiery Rishabh Pant. Pant was dismissed after a 43-run partnership and soon after, Kohli departed as well, scoring a run-a-ball innings of 24 runs.
Suryakumar’s quick fifty and Hardik Pandya’s innings later on helped India to reach a total of 181/8. In reply, the bowlers did their job to secure a 47-run win for the men in blue.
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Kohli in his previous innings in this tournament wasn’t even able to get his score in double figures, a three-match streak which he broke in the fixture against Afghanistan. Despite getting a start, Kohli failed to capitalize on it. In a lackluster innings of 24, Kohli managed just a single six before falling prey to Afghanistan’s lethal skipper, Rashid Khan.
The star batter is yet to cross the 50-run mark in this year’s T20 World Cup campaign, which is a worrying sign for team India ahead of the knockouts and the Super 8 clash against the mighty Australians on June 24.
British journalist Lawrence booth questioned the Royal Challengers Bengaluru batter’s inclusion in the ongoing T20 World Cup as he claimed Jasprit Bumrah is India’s star performer this time.
As long as Bumrah stays fit, India are in this World Cup. Still not convinced Virat Kohli is worth his place, mind you.
It’s safe to say the Rohit-Kohli opening pair has proved to be a big failure in the ongoing tournament for the Indians. Fans were eager to watch the pair in action since both are arguably the biggest names in T20 cricket, but it has proved to be a disaster so far.
The pair’s best partnership of the tournament was against Pakistan, which was 12 runs. Losing an early wicket, especially before the powerplay could prove to be fatal in the later stages of the tournament. Yashasvi Jaiswal would be the ideal candidate to open if he gets the chance but then arises the question of who to bench.
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It’s fair to say that Kohli has been on a poor run of form in the ongoing competition, but dropping him from the playing XI might be a step too far. The veteran batter has been India’s best batter in T20 World Cups, having scored over a thousand runs and sitting atop as the undisputed king of the competition.
Although he has been struggling, Kohli has a knack for turning up for the team when needed the most, especially in T20 World Cups. He has played some match-winning innings for the team in the past and India might need one more from him as the tournament progresses.
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Rahul is a content producer for The Sporting News’ India edition.
