Allan Border, the Australian cricket legend, expressed concerns about Virat Kohli‘s batting form, suggesting the Indian number four might have “lost the edge.” Border observed Kohli’s tendency to play at deliveries he would typically leave. He questioned if a mindset issue was affecting Kohli’s performance.
“Today’s dismissal, that’s normally a delivery he would have left alone if he was in his best possible form. I’m not sure what’s going on with Virat mentally (and) whether he’s just lost that edge,” said Border as per Fox sports.
During the World Test Championship Final against Australia, Kohli was dismissed for 3 runs while attempting to chase a wide delivery from Josh Hazlewood. This dismissal left India struggling at 22/3, which quickly worsened to 44/4, chasing a target of 445.
This dismissal mirrored a pattern observed in Kohli’s recent innings. He has been prone to edging wide deliveries due to loose drives or being beaten by deliveries with bounce. This trend has been evident throughout the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and in the past two years.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan shared similar concerns. He noted that Kohli hadn’t fallen victim to an unplayable delivery (“jaffa”) in the series, indicating a vulnerability to ordinary balls.
“He’s a player who’s going out there (and) almost trying to get on top too soon. When he plays at his best, particularly in Australia and England when the ball does a little bit more, he just leaves the ball. Most of his dismissals in this series have been balls that he could have left. I don’t think he’s got a jaffa.”
Another contributing factor to Kohli’s inconsistent performance has been the timing of his entry to the crease. His unbeaten century in the second innings of the Perth Test stands out because it was the only instance where he didn’t face the new ball and a fresh Australian bowling attack.
The inconsistent opening partnerships of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, and KL Rahul have placed additional pressure on the experienced middle-order duo of Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Both batsmen require careful management of their exposure to the new ball.
At the close of the third day, India’s score stood at 51/4. Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul were at the crease, aiming to avert the follow-on. India’s position in the match remained precarious, with the onus on their batsmen to stage a recovery.
