Virat Kohli’s ongoing struggle with deliveries outside the off stump continued on Day 1 of India’s fifth and final Test against Australia. The familiar pattern unfolded once again: Kohli, coming in at his usual No. 4 position, left some deliveries with composure but ultimately fell to one outside the off stump. He edged a back-of-a-length delivery from Scott Boland to the slips, departing for 17 off 69 balls.
In an attempt to analyze what’s going wrong for the batting icon, former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan drew a comparison to cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar.
Tendulkar, who holds the record for the most international runs and centuries, was once troubled by a similar issue during India’s 2003-04 tour of Australia. His trademark cover drive, which had been a key part of his game, became a source of frustration as he kept losing his wicket to it in the first three Tests of the series.
However, Tendulkar made an incredible comeback, deciding to shelve the cover drive and instead adopting a more disciplined approach. In the fourth Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground, he scored an unbeaten 241 in his first innings, proving the power of adjusting one’s technique.
Pathan echoed a similar sentiment about Kohli, saying: “He is such a great player but keeps making the same mistake over and over. There’s a saying that big players extend the gap between their mistakes, but Virat hasn’t done that yet.”
Pathan then referenced the iconic example of Tendulkar’s disciplined approach in Sydney: “We often talk about Sachin Tendulkar not playing the cover drive here in Sydney, and we hope Virat can show that same control, leaving deliveries outside off stump with discipline. But Tendulkar had the square cut and uppercut as alternatives to the cover drive. Virat, on the other hand, doesn’t have those shots in his repertoire.”
He continued, “It’s not that Virat has never played those shots, but he seems reluctant to do so. That’s why he keeps going for the drive, or attempting to defend balls on the 6th or 7th stump line, and ends up getting the outside edge.”
Pathan’s analysis suggests that Kohli’s reluctance to diversify his shots could be contributing to his ongoing struggles, and that a change in approach might be necessary for him to overcome this challenge.
