Team India skipper Virat Kohli is arguably the greatest batsman of the current generation. His consistency across the format is a point of inspiration for the younger lot. Meanwhile, former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir believes credit should go to MS Dhoni for Kohli’s growth at the highest level.
Early in his Test career, Kohli got the exposure from Dhoni to express himself. He had a horrendous debut tour against West Indies. After a couple of series, he managed to come back but mostly warmed the bench. But MS Dhoni backed Virat Kohli against Australia, where he was the only visiting batsman to score a century.
MS Dhoni backed Virat Kohli – Gautam Gambhir
In the following tour of England in 2014, there were high expectations from Kohli. However, the talismanic run-scorer failed to deliver scoring 134 runs from ten innings. Legendary Indian cricketer VVS Laxman recalled how Virat Kohli made amends after his forgettable tour to England in 2014 and bounced back.
“And then when he toured England again, the way he scored a hundred in Birmingham in the first innings, that is my favourite innings of Virat Kohli. That drive and passion was very evident right from the first time I saw him but that series was very important as far as being a catalyst for him to become a true superstar of world cricket,” Laxman said on Star Sports’ show Cricket Connected.
Speaking on the same lines, Gautam Gambhir said it was likely the last tour of Virat Kohli in red-ball cricket. However, Kohli had the backing of the then skipper MS Dhoni. With a couple of opportunities in his strides, Kohli never looked back since then. But Gambhir believes the credit should go to Dhoni for Kohli’s rich success.
“I totally agree with Laxman bhai. The sort of series it was in 2014, even I was there on that tour. You have to give credit to MS Dhoni because a lot of careers have ended after such a series, especially in one format. But he gave that kind of security to Virat Kohli plus his own eagerness,” he said.
With 7240 runs under his belt from 86 Tests, Virat Kohli is already the sixth-highest run-scorer for India. He has scored seven double-centuries – most by an Indian batsman.
