Ravi Shastri slams Virat Kohli critics as the former star Indian skipper is set to play his 100th T20I in the Asia Cup versus Pakistan.
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A humiliating defeat in the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup opening match versus Pakistan was a hard pill to swallow, especially for the ardent Indian Cricket fans, who do not have much memories of an India defeat versus their arch-rivals in an ICC tournament.
With the commencement of the Asia Cup 2022 half-a-week away, the build-up towards the continental supremacy title has been hyped-up as expected, although two of both the team’s superstars – Jasprit Bumrah and Shaheen Shah Afridi will miss out the tournament due to injuries.
However, post missing the tours of West India and Zimbabwe, despite an ordinary tour of England preceding them, former Indian skipper Virat Kohli will be back in action yet again, amidst huge talks more than ever in his career pertaining his poor-run-of-form.
Ravi Shastri slams Virat Kohli critics
Former India batter and team director-cum-coach Ravi Shastri, however, has his weight behind Virat Kohli, reposing full faith in him to come good right from the first match itself against Pakistan, on August 28.
Having spent quality time along with his family in two different countries and at home post the England tour with team India, Shastri reckons that the break will help Kohli take the field with a much calmer mind.
He further seemed to take a subtle dig at Kohli’s critics, by stating that their ‘mouths will be shut for the rest of the tournament’ if he gets a fifty in the very first match of the tournament, which will also be his 100th T20I.
“He will come back with a calmer mind because the heat is off. You have been away. Now, what you do will get the tone. He gets a fifty in the very first game, mouths will be shut for the rest of the tournament. What’s happened in the past is history. Remember, public memory is very short. So it works both ways. His opportunity here is to get that calmness and then take it one day at a time,” Shastri said on Star Sports.
Shastri will be flying to the UAE to be part of the Asia Cup 2022 commentary panel. He is presently part of the commentary team of the Sky Sports in the ongoing ‘The Hundred’ men’s and women’s competition.
