Indian star Virat Kohli recently took retirement from Test Cricket, all eyes were raised on his decision whether he should have carried it further instead of calling it a day in the longest format of the game.
The Fittest athlete is regarded for bringing fitness culture in Indian team but the moment he took retirement all eyes were raised on him.
Kohli by his standard didn’t score at per his potential, where he played 123 Test matches and amassed 9230 runs in the longest format of the game.
He scored 30th century and 31 half century while ending his test career.
The way Kohli used to present himself in every interview it seems that “He would prolong playing Test Cricket and he loves this format the most but his decision shocked everyone to the core”.
Kohli finally call it quits, for his test career and what was strange that his retirement came week after Rohit Sharma’s retirement.
Any Asian Batter is considered greatest only as per Western Media, if they are able to perform best in SENA Countries(South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia).
His record on Australian shores have been fantastic, but when it comes to sailing his record in English conditions, he was horrible when he toured first in 2014.
MS Dhoni was India’s captain back then, the moment he retired in the year 2014 all responsibility laid on the shoulders of Virat Kohli, the shift wouldn’t be good for him.
Kohli did brilliantly on most tours but faltered in England Tour when he toured their first it was an absolute shambolic Performance by him.
In 5 matches he played in the year 2014, he scored 134 runs with a meager average of 13.40 where his highest score being 39 where on most occasions, he got out by nicking the ball outside the off stump.
2018 Tour of England saw Virat Kohli Rise on English shores:
You know what’s great about Great players they don’t repeat the same mistake again, when he toured England for the 2nd time in the year 2018 he made slight change in his stance.
The slight change in stance ensured him to leave the ball outside the off stump especially the outgoing deliveries from James Anderson.
The lanky speedster used to get Kohli out on previous occasions, it was different this time around, where the star batter adjusted based on the pace of the game.
The reflected on his score where he scored 593 runs from 5 matches he played with his score being 149 runs with a massive average of 59.30.
He scored 2 centuries, 3 half century under his belt in 2018 Tour of England.
Let’s represent his performance in the statistical format to be shared in the below format:
| Series (Year) | Total Matches Played | Runs Scored | Highest Score | Strike Rate | 100 scored |
| 2014 | 5 | 134 | 39 | 46.52 | 0 |
| 2018 | 5 | 593 | 149 | 57.85 | 2 |
Kohli adjusted his batting stance based on the requirement of the game which eased him out to play most shots all over the park brilliantly.
The way he maneuvered bowling all over the work was a treat to watch out for also his ability to convert ones into twos and so on were the highlight of the tour.
The way Kohli batted in those conditions, it seems that rest of the batters were pretty alien to those conditions they hardly had any answer about how to play incoming and outgoing deliveries targeted towards James Anderson and Stuart Broad.
Kohli also changed his training methology on English tour, where we could see his fitness breeming out of his pocket the moment he targeted to pounce on any deliveries.
The way he batted throughout 2018 English tour it was pretty evident, he knows what he is doing and how he is going to simply dominate all other bowlers all over the park.
The English bowling unit comprises of Stuart Broad, Sam Curran, James Anderson and Ben Stokes on their conditions they were difficult to handle, Kohli faced them like a lion.
Virat Kohli swiftly made changes in his stance where he tried to take guard outside the off stumps, so that he can simply encounter Anderson swings.
Kohli ensured that he would meet the ball before it starts to break for a movement off the pitch- a massive risk against pacers bowling at more than 135 Km/hr on english soil.
Yes you can certainly say that English fielders certainly missed few edges, that weren’t taken, but that’s the charm of cricket and his valiant knock of 151 runs and 49 runs came in the losing cause, which already took his 2014 burdens and failure away with the bat.
What was most alluring to see as an Indian Cricket Fan, James Anderson couldn’t get Kohli out even once throughout the series who took his wicket as bunny on 2014 England tour.
Anderson failing to get Kohli out for once in the entire tour, simply meant Kohli batting in terms of technical standpoint were upto the mark.
There was hint of irritations in Anderson eyes, where he also said “Do You want to be part of English squad?” which in itself was victory for brilliant Virat Kohli.
This trend continued throughout the series and ultimately Kohli had a psychological edge over Anderson when it mattered the most.
Some More Takeaways from that Series:
1. Virat kohli shut down his haters mouth while adjusting brilliantly on English soil.
2. Kohli later devised his plan on how he encountered Anderson Pace bowling on English soil where he credited his technical swift adjustment to Ravi Shastri.
3. “Ravi Bhai told me to stand outside the crease. He explained me the perfect mindset to do that which I did and it paved the way for me on English conditions”.
4. If you analyze Kohli’s technique from close lens, the moment you are etching outside the off stump, your mindset is prepared to tackle any bowl brilliantly. You will also be in control of the space you are playing. you are playing(in) and not give the chance to bowlers to get you out.
6. Several Congratulatory message pour in for Virat Kohli from all over the world, for his valiant contributions and setting the standards in Test Cricket by huge margin.
Overall Kohli leaving the longest format of the game will leave biggest Void in Test Cricket, and for Indian team it won’t be simply not easy for any player to carry forward his legacy in the longest format of the game.
Kohli charisma, charm and ability to inspire youngsters with his fitness, prime performance makes him standout performer for sure in years to come.
Logically if we go through standpoint, he could have scored more runs in Red ball cricket as per his standard his performance have been sub par for sure.
Kohli is regarded as phenomenal athlete but every great athlete had to call it a day which he did for now.
Conclusion:
Virat Kohli in his 14 year old Test career was simply phenomenal to the core, but his lull phase as batter between 2017-2020 where he was not scoring as per his standard as the era between 2014-2017 was absolutely Virat Kohli era where in every 2nd innings he scored century at his will.
Kohli unmatched consistency with the bat and running between the wickets at his will did wonders for India in all three formats of the game.
Virat Kohli records so far in all three formats of the game have been brilliant where he scored more than 14,000 runs in ODI Cricket and with him still playing that format would mean 1-2 more centuries are round the corner for Kohli.
With Kohli eluding career and unmatched consistency will be hardly seen being replicated by other batter in times to come. The man brought entire thinking shift in Indian Cricket Team and deserve praise for bringing that swift change in Men in Blue across all three formats.
Frequently Asked Questions:
1. How many Total runs Virat Kohli scored on 2014 England Tour?
Answer: 134 runs
2. How Many Total runs Virat Kohli scored on 2018 England Tour?
Answer: 593 runs
3. How Many runs Virat Kohli scored ever in Test Cricket Carrer?
Answer: 9230 runs.
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