Haren
India vs Australia: With Virat Kohli’s form under the scanner as India embark on one of their toughest tours in recent memory against Australia at Perth on Friday, Cheteshwar Pujara belives that the batter’s past successes down Under will help him turn things around.
“There is a lot of expectation of him. The number of matches he’s playing and the athlete Virat is, he doesn’t get enough breaks in between. That is why sometimes, when you’re not getting enough breaks, your body and confidence go down a bit. That’s normal,” Pujara said in Star Sports press room.
Kohli is the only player in that top order with the most experience of playing in Australia. He has played 13 Tests Down Under and scored 1,352 runs at an average of 54.08. However, recently, he has been going through a lean patch, averaging 15.50 in the recent 0-3 whitewash against New Zealand.
“He has got some break. He’s at a place where he likes to compete. If someone is having a go at him, he would like to give it back to the bowlers — that’s how he started his journey. He has set high standards for himself. He has that awareness. He has been a leader and is probably the best in the circuit. He’s aware of what’s expected of him and how many runs he has to make,” he added.
Kohli was the captain in the 2017-18 tour Down Under where Pujara aggregated over 500 runs and played a significant role in India’s historic Test series triumph.
“I’m confident that once he gets going, he needs to spend some time in the game. He’s capable of doing all things. Always leading from the front, it’s about getting a 50-60-70. If he gets a hundred, then he will have a great series ahead,” Pujara said of Kohli.
“In every match, he is motivated, whatever the format. Definitely, he has worked on it. It’s about getting that start and spending time at the crease,” he added.
