The former head coach of the Indian Cricket team, Ravi Shastri was extremely happy to see Virat Kohli getting a 100, after a span of very nearly three years. It was Kohli’s 71st century and very first in the shortest format of the sport which is T20I. While talking about his wonderful thump in India’s last round of the Asia Cup 2022 against Afghanistan, Shastri said that the “burden is finally off from Kohli’s back.”
Kohli had been going through a lean period for a long while, however the tables turned during the Asia Cup and the batting maestro tracked down his form back. He completed as India’s highest run scorer with two scores of 50+ runs and a 100 to his name. The whole cricketing fraternity was blissful seeing Kohli play in his standard structure and get once more into the game more grounded than at any other time.
“You mentioned 1020 days, I can say 700 days I was in that dressing room when that happened. It’s a long time. The monkey is off his back now. When you had astounding success like he has, when 70 hundreds come like this, then you go through a patch of one, two years, two-and-half years, two-and-three quarter years, and then everyday people start reminding – ‘It’s been that long’. He is human. It would have been eating him up. He would be getting up every morning, whether thinking of it or not, subconsciously being reminded,” said Shastri while speaking to Star Sports.
The former Big Brother (as he liked to be known as) of the Indian team, Ravi Shastri, added that Kohli will feel less worried since the strain of arriving at a century has at last been lifted. Shastri added that the last 40 runs of Kohli’s knock against Afghanistan were the point at which he uncovered his actual game and played in his standard style, with practically no trepidation or tension.
“Today, I think he will be five kilos less. Don’t ask me where the weight has gone from, five kilos less at least from the head. You could see from the last 40 runs of his innings. It was Virat Kohli. His trade mark shots, the confidence, the poise, the utter disdain for bowling is back. It took a long time coming,” Shastri added.
