Former India coach Ravi Shastri shared his thoughts on what makes Virat Kohli exceptional in ODI cricket ahead of the 2025 Champions Trophy final. Shastri highlighted Kohli’s unmatched discipline and game awareness, though he acknowledged that the star batter had experienced a dip in form in recent years.
The 36-year-old has been instrumental in India’s journey to the final of the eight-team tournament, delivering crucial knocks against Pakistan and Australia in successful run chases.
Speaking on the latest episode of the ICC Review, the 62-year-old noted that Kohli had returned to his trademark style—rotating strike efficiently and playing grounded shots. He remarked:
“His discipline, his awareness of match situations. I thought he tried to get ahead of himself in the last three or four years, where he was trying to outdo what he’s good at and sometimes, it can catch up on you.”
“But he’s back to what he does best, which is take the singles, hit the ball along the ground, if necessary, go for the big one. Some of the greatest players who played the one-day game, especially in the chase, are guys who can do that. When you pick up singles with ease, there’s no pressure.”
The Delhi-born batter recently became the fastest to reach 14,000 ODI runs, achieving the milestone in just 287 innings. He joined the elite company of Sachin Tendulkar and Kumar Sangakkara.
Ravi Shastri likens Virat Kohli to sports legends
During the conversation, Ravi Shastri likened Virat Kohli to sports icons such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal, emphasizing the intensity and energy they bring. He elaborated:
“You know people (like to) watch sport when they watch a sportsman with energy. Whether his name is (Cristiano) Ronaldo or it’s (Lionel) Messi or whether it’s a (Novak) Djokovic or whether it’s (Rafael) Nadal, that energy that they bring in – there’s a certain kind of charisma and it rubs off on other people.”
“They want to watch this guy play. It just goes to show the amount of sacrifice an individual makes. I saw that with Tendulkar, loved his food, loves to do things that the other boys wanted to do, but said no.”
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