Virat Kohli: As the former captain, Virat Kohli unleashed an expansive drive at a wide delivery from Scott Boland on Day 5 of the World Test Championship final, a sense of collective disappointment rose through ICT fans. The former captain, visibly disappointed, had missed a golden opportunity to capitalize on a promising start in the final innings.
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Virat Kohli’s untimely dismissal
Prior to Virat Kohli succumbing to what appeared to be a devised strategy by Australia, as he impulsively swung his bat at a delivery from Scott Boland, he showcased remarkable composure while batting. This display of control etched memories of the vintage Virat Kohli, who admirably battled and achieved significant scores during his exploits in England back in 2018, leaving fans and former India head coach Ravi Shastri reminiscing about those memorable performances.
Nonetheless, the loose shot and consequent dismissal deflated the hopes that had been buoyed by the partnership between Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane. The duo had admirably kept India afloat with a solid 86-run partnership for the fourth wicket in the final innings.
The Indian supporters, who eagerly tuned in on Sunday afternoon, were undoubtedly taken aback by Virat Kohli’s unexpected dismissal to a tempting delivery. After displaying immense composure on the fourth day, when the team relied on their premier batsman to rise to the occasion, the fans had anticipated a more solid performance from him.
Flop show by Virat Kohli in WTC
As anticipated, Kohli’s dismissal on the morning of Day 5 triggered a collapse, leading India’s innings to crumble from 179 for 3 to a meagre total of 234 all-out within a single session.
It wasn’t just Kohli who fell victim to poor shot selection; other prominent batsmen, including Rohit Sharma (misjudged sweep against Nathan Lyon), Cheteshwar Pujara (ill-advised upper-cut against Pat Cummins), and Ajinkya Rahane (risky shot against Mitchell Starc), also paid the price. Consequently, India squandered a valuable opportunity to put up a stronger fight on a favourable batting surface at The Oval.
Throughout the recently-concluded WTC 2021-23 cycle, Kohli struggled to find his form away from home, accumulating a mere 455 runs in 17 innings at an average of 28. He failed to score a single century and managed just three fifty-plus scores in away matches.
Sunil Gavaskar disappointed with Virat Kohli
The dismissal of Virat Kohli on Day 5 of the World Test Championship left former India opener and renowned batsman Sunil Gavaskar notably disheartened. Speaking on a show, he stated, “It was a bad shot. You’ll ask me how he did that. I think you should have asked Kohli what shot he played. That was a shot outside the off-stump. If you are to win the match, you need long innings, how do you get to a century if you are going to play a shot for a delivery that was so wide outside the off-stump.”
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