Despite being arguably the greatest T20I batsman of all time, and the greatest batter in T20 World Cup history, Virat Kohli’s place in India’s squad for the T20 World Cup 2024 is not yet certain.
Virat Kohli is the leading T20I run-scorer, the leading scorer in T20 World Cup, and the only player to twice win the Player of the Tournament award in the competition. Yet, with the next T20 World Cup, in the West Indies and the USA in June, on the horizon, separated by one IPL season, Kohli needs to prove it all once again.
While the BCCI secretary Jay Shah has confirmed that Rohit Sharma will lead India in the T20 World Cup 2024 in June, Kohli’s place is not yet confirmed. “We will discuss Virat’s role in due course,” Shah said earlier.
In fact, according to a report in The Telegraph India, the BCCI and the selection committee, led by Ajit Agarkar, have decided to make the “harsh decision” of excluding the 35-year-old superstar batsman for a couple of reasons.
2 reasons why the BCCI wants to drop Virat Kohli from T20 World Cup 2024 squad:
Virat Kohli “not able to cope with the team’s needs”
This is regarding Kohli’s strike rate in T20 cricket. While he’s arguably the greatest IPL and T20I batsman, Kohli’s strike rate, especially for the first half of his knocks, has come under the scanner. This could even be considered not being up to the modern T20 standards, where batters need to put a lesser price on their wickets.
The report added: “Only a superlative effort from Kohli in the IPL could force a change in plans since the national selectors believe he hasn’t been able to cope with the team’s needs in the shortest format. Youngsters like Suryakumar Yadav, Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma and Shivam Dube are thought to be more suited to take the team forward.”
The report added that Ajit Agarkar is learned to have already spoken with Kohli about “a much-needed change in his approach to cater to the demands of the T20 format”.
Selectors feel Virat Kohli’s game not suited to West Indies’ slow pitches
The pitches in the West Indies are dry with cracks and with the games being played during day time – to cater to the night-time of Indian (and Asian) audience – the surfaces are going to be slow with spinners being crucial.
“It is also believed that the slow wickets in the West Indies wouldn’t suit him (Kohli),” the report added.
It added: “Agarkar will again have to take up the cudgels and convince Kohli that he has to make way for the younger generation.”
Virat Kohli has played only 3 T20Is in the West Indies, in which he scored 112 runs at a strike rate of 141.
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