Former cricketer Parthiv Patel believes India should open with skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the upcoming Asia Cup 2022, which gets underway on August 27. Kohli returned to the squad after a significant break as the BCCI announced their 15-member team on Monday (August 8).
Kohli has copped a lot of criticism for his lean patch with the bat in the last few months. He has gone without scoring a century for almost three years now, with his last hundred coming in November 2019 against Bangladesh at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Amid all these criticisms, Kohli gave the West Indies and Zimbabwe series a miss.
As Virat Kohli gears up for a return, Parthiv Patel reckons that opening will be the best place for the former to bat. Speaking on Cricbuzz, Parthiv feels that it will allow the former to play freely.
“I would want Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to open. I want Kohli to open, so that he can just go out and unleash himself. He’s taken a break, but we all know there’s no shortage of ability in his batting style.
“As an opener, you start the game at 0-0. Whereas at No.3, you have to play according to the situation. Kohli can play the way he wants and can still play at a strike rate of 170, and if two wickets have fallen early, he can also play at 130,” he added.
“He doesn’t have to prove anything to anyone” – Parthiv Patel on Virat Kohli
Parthiv Patel said that Kohli has done well as an opener in the shortest format of the game and despite the lack of the form, he said that the former skipper should be trusted to play in the T20Is.
“You want Kohli to play as freely as he can. There’s no pressure on him and he doesn’t have to prove anything to anyone. He’s already scored 70 hundreds and has scored plenty of runs,” he concluded.
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