The talented batsman from Pakistan, Ahmed Shehzad has often drawn comparisons with the India skipper Virat Kohli. While they look a lot similar, their batting style also matches a lot. However, Shehzad has revealed that he couldn’t prosper as a batsman due to the comparisons made by people.
Meanwhile, both Shehzad and Kohli had a brisk start to their career in red-ball cricket. In fact, the batsman from Pakistan was ahead of Kohli in terms of statistics at one point in time. After 13 Tests, Ahmed Shehzad scored 982 runs at an average of 40.91 with three centuries, while Virat Kohli had 788 at an average of 35.81. However, since then, the tide turned as Shehzad couldn’t live up to the expectations.
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Along with his inconsistencies with the bat, Ahmed Shehzad found himself entangled in off the field controversies. He failed a dope Test in 2018 which earned his four-month ban. Then he broke the rules to play a club cricket match only to extend the ban by another four weeks. Speaking on his career and comparisons with Virat Kohli, the talented batsman revealed that there is a lot of pressure.
“Of course, there is pressure due to comparisons. We tend to compare two players without focussing on their respective backgrounds. For any player to succeed, it requires the backing of the coach, captain and cricket board. In short, he or she needs confidence in order to do well,” Shehzad told Cricingif.
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The 28-year-old Ahmed Shehzad further added that the modern-day greats have had the backing of the skipper during their early days in international cricket. He also picked Virat Kohli’s case to state if he didn’t had the support of MS Dhoni, then it would have been difficult for him to pile so many runs.
“If you look at the backgrounds of Virat, Rohit Sharma, Joe Root, Kane Williamson and Babar Azam, they have been really lucky as well. Kohli had revealed that he was going to be dropped from plenty of series, but MS Dhoni backed him. Same was the case with Rohit Sharma. Thus, faith was instilled upon them by Dhoni,” Shehzad concluded.
