Shah Faisal
He was fishing outside off and caught a shark in his net.
2021 was by far a stable year in comparison to 2020 where the world saw all its squares turned into night scenes of graveyards and so were cricket grounds where doors were shut beyond which played 22 players only acknowledged by their support staff. 2021 saw the visuals of spectators chanting for players especially in England where a full house of crowd chanted for the English team when they were remarkably chasing a total of 330. It also saw a cricket game in the world’s largest cricket stadium in terms of crowd capacity. It also saw a full house in an India v Pakistan T20I game in Dubai. Now that 2021 has officially folded itself in a cover of the past and has given way to 2022 with the hope that the cricketing world will witness regular cricket escaping from the toxic routine of quarantine and social distancing protocols for professional cricketers, let us see and analyze the limping journey of a great cricketer who is passing through the most dreadful phase of his cricketing career.
Besides the above-mentioned highlights there was a paradoxical highlight; a dismal Virat Kohli year in test cricket that caught the attention of viewers around the world. The slow downfall of Kohli remained the center of focus throughout the year, a highlight.
As most of his fans awaited his century at the start of the calendar year, they are now left stranded at the fact of his failure at test level for not getting runs, leave alone their hopes for a century. Most of his fans even lost their glorious faith in Kohli. Their pride was sinking slowly in cold waters and they hoped every time he pushed his hands to stroke off the waters to swim through it. But it appeared as if he had forgotten to be the Michael Phelps and exhausted himself by pushing too hard.
In 2021 Virat Kohli has scored 536 runs at an average of 28.2 with only 4 fifty-plus scores. These aren’t the numbers of someone who is set to contest for a spot among the greatest players of all times. One can’t associate it with Kohli, they can only be associated with some player of the English test Cricket team of 2021 except Root.
Why has he failed so consistently across the year? It is a technical flaw or some random mental issue? Apparently, there is non to decipher nor did anyone see him disappointed to a high degree after his dismissal. The only news of Kohli not getting it right came from himself when he opened up about his chat with his great RCB teammate AB de Villiers where Kohli was told to just look at the ball closely. It happened just before the first leg of IPL. Fine, he started looking at the ball closely so what?
He went to England to take part in the final of the Inaugural WTC final and he failed. What was he doing? Only Kohli would know. He was flirting with balls that were bowled on lengths and that too from a tall bowler. One can’t flirt with length balls outside off if those are bowled by taller bowlers because they are deemed to rise high and even swing away or in if one is playing in England. Jamison got his wicket twice in the final and India registered her name as the loser of the first WTC final in test history. Later that season Kohli went on to play England and got out the first fall he faced and that too from James Anderson; his greatest opponent in test cricket. In the remaining innings of that series his' was a routine dismissal: outside off and nick through behind the wicket, either to slips or keeper. Only once he got out to spinner which was when Kohli tried to play outside off.
Later in the year when he went to South Africa, he got out twice poking wide balls outside off. both of them were insane shots especially his last dismissal of 2021 was a shot that happens once in a blue moon; the first ball of post-lunch session pitches outside off and leaves the batsman going toward wicketkeeper and first slip and the great poker of wide balls tries to play it for a squirting cover drive and resultantly edges it behind stumps and leaves the year behind him as his most dismal year in terms of his performances.
He also played 5 test matches in India in 2021 and most of the time got out to spinners. They were no great blunders, some of the balls were gems and everyone would have got out to them the other dismissals were combinations of bad luck, umpire calls, and dragged on[s].
The questions that arise by looking at his overseas dismissals are not about his technique nor are they about mental flaws. To us, it appears as if there is something emotionally wrong with Kohli. A great judge of lines and lengths like him will never fall so consistently to those balls, neither is he ignorant enough not to know that what he is doing is wrong and technically unlawful. These are mistakes that a fool driven by emotions, pride, or anger would do. Every time he chases a ball outside off looks as if he is trying to prove someone wrong. Repeating those despite constant failures indicates a personality that is stubbornly obstinate. It appears as if Kohli has decided to play as he likes to play not how he should play.
Kohli must mend his approach and also his mind. He is a great player and his country wants him to be around for longer times. The way he is getting out is very shameful for a player who is nearing his 100th test match. It is time that he accepts the reality of time and accepts his form of dismissal as a challenge and overcomes it. If he fails to do so I am afraid he will lose his place in the list of great test players of his time forget about the greatest of all times list.
Kohli has lost his touch because of his front foot. In the past, his front would go straight towards the ball but these days he is playing away from body. He is using his bottom hand more than he should which prevents him from playing the ball along the ground.
ReplyDeleteYes... Indeed. He is chase very wide deliveries. They must be left alone.
DeleteYes... Indeed. He is chase very wide deliveries. They must be left alone.
Delete