Carl Hooper on Virat Kohli: “Virat is a very good player. Is he a great player?”

Dixit Bhargav | 13/10/2018
Carl Hooper on Virat Kohli

Carl Hooper on Virat Kohli: The West Indian quashed all comparisons of Kohli with legendary players of the yesteryear era.

Former West Indies captain Carl Hooper played during an era when West Indies were going a transition phase. At that time, no one would have thought of them never returning to what they were known for initially.

In an interview with Cricketnext, Hooper quashed all comparisons of current Indian captain in Virat Kohli with great names of his era. Hooper said that the standards have dipped over the years to the extent that he described playing against the current West Indies’ team as ‘like taking a candy from a child’.

“It’s difficult to say, it’s a different era. When you look at Sri Lanka or Pakistan, the standard dipped. Sachin scored his runs against bowlers like Wasim, Waqar, Ambrose, and Walsh. But when you look at the current West Indies team, it’s like taking a candy from a child. It’s hard to make a comparison between eras but from a stats point of view,” he was quoted.

On being asked if Kohli reminds him of the legendary Sir Viv Richards, Hooper was quick to say ‘no’, terming both the batsmen as very different from each other.

“No, a totally different player. We’ll probably never see another Viv Richards. Kohli is a very good player but not in that intimidating way that Viv was. Kohli will probably go down as one of the greats when he finishes but I don’t think I’ve seen another player that demands respect like Viv Richards,” he said.

51-year Hooper was of the opinion that Kohli is a very good player but calling him great is ahead of its time. “Virat is a very good player. Is he a great player? I don’t know. But by the time he’s finished he’s going to be there,” he added.

Read some of the recent Twitter reactions on Kohli below:

 

Post Edited By: Dixit Bhargav
Carl Hooper Virat Kohli

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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