In the vast expanse of Indian cricket, where legends are made and careers are celebrated, there are intriguing stories of players whose paths, despite being parallel, never quite intersected in the most conventional way. Here, we look at five such cricketers who, for various reasons, never batted with Virat Kohli in international cricket:
1. Mohit Sharma – The Unseen Speedster
Mohit Sharma, known for his ability to swing the ball late, made his mark in domestic cricket before earning a spot in the Indian team. His international career, though brief, was marked by a memorable debut in Zimbabwe where he was named Man of the Match. However, his tenure as a lower-order batsman meant he rarely got the chance to bat, let alone with Virat Kohli, who was establishing himself as a top-order batsman during Mohit’s time.
2. Munaf Patel – The Swing King
Munaf Patel’s career was characterized by his ability to generate swing, often at speeds that troubled batsmen worldwide. His international career overlapped with Kohli’s early days, but Munaf’s role as a tailender and Kohli’s rise through the batting order meant they never batted together. Munaf’s last international match was before Kohli became a regular in the middle order.
3. Ashish Nehra – The Veteran Left-Arm Seamer
Ashish Nehra, with his left-arm swing and yorkers, was a mainstay in the Indian bowling attack for years. His career, spanning over a decade, saw him often bowling at the death or in the powerplay, rarely needing to bat. By the time Kohli was a fixture in the team, Nehra’s batting was more about survival than partnership, ensuring they never shared the crease.
4. Yuzvendra Chahal – The Leg-Spin Maestro
Chahal, known for his leg-spin and googly, has been a vital part of India’s limited-overs side. Despite playing numerous matches with Kohli, their batting positions rarely aligned. Kohli, often batting in the top order, and Chahal, a lower-order batsman, never found themselves needing to bat together in international cricket.
5. Praveen Kumar – The Swing and Seam Specialist
Praveen Kumar’s international career was winding down just as Kohli was beginning to dominate. Known for his ability to swing the ball both ways, Kumar’s batting was minimal, and by the time Kohli was a regular, Kumar was out of the international scene, ensuring they never batted together.
These cricketers, each with their unique contributions to Indian cricket, never shared the batting crease with Kohli due to various reasons ranging from career timelines, roles in the team, to the nature of their cricketing journeys. While Kohli’s aggressive batting and leadership have been pivotal in shaping modern Indian cricket, these players’ contributions, though in different facets, have been equally significant. Their stories remind us of the vastness of cricketing talent in India, where even legends like Kohli might miss sharing the pitch with some notable names due to the sheer depth of cricketing careers in the country.
