Srinagar, April 20: Around 100 matches without a century and just 119 runs from seven games in ongoing IPL 2022, Virat Kohli is going through a very hard lean patch in his career.
Reacting to Kohli’s form, former India cricketer and coach Ravi Shastri said Kohli is overcooked and needs a break.
“I am going straight to the main guy here. Virat Kohli is overcooked. If anyone needs a break, it’s him. Whether it’s 2 months or a month-and-a-half, whether it’s after England or before England,” Ravuli Shastri said on Star Sports after RCB beat LSG by 18 runs on Wednesday.
“He needs break, because he has got 6-7 years of cricket left in him and you don’t want to lose that with a fried brain. He is not the only one. There might be 1 or 2 in world cricket going through the same. You need to address the problem upfront,” Shastri said.
“When I was coach at the time when this first started, the first thing I said is ‘you have to show empathy to the guys’. If you’re going to be forceful, there is a very thin line there, from a guy losing the plot as opposed to him hanging in there and giving his best. So you have to be extremely careful,” Shastri added.
Former England captain Kevin Pietersen also said Kohli should take time away from the game as well as social media to rejuvenate himself.
“The guy has had so much to deal with, from marriage to baby to media scrutiny and all on his personal life. He is the biggest star on show,” he said.
“Virat Kohli needs to say ‘cricket boots, for six months, I will see you later’. Turn off social media, go and get re-energised”.
“When the stadiums are full again, you guarantee him a spot in that side for the next 12, 24 or 36 months. Tell him ‘you’re our guy, we know you’ll deliver for us’.” Pietersen said Kohli “is going to find it very hard to continue delivering now as his brain is completely fried”.