‘It is no guarantee that he will continue…’ – Former Indian Cricketer’s brutal take on Virat Kohli ahead of Lucknow Super Giants clash

Published on April 10, 2023

Former Royal Challengers Bangalore Captain Virat Kohli has had a mixed Indian Premier League 2023 so far. After a batting collapse against the Kolkata Knight Riders, Virat will look to get back on track on matchday 15 against Lucknow Super Giants in the world’s richest T20 tournament.

Kohli began the season with a blistering 82* off 49 balls against the five-time champions Mumbai Indians at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. However, the former RCB captain was out for 21 off 18 balls against Kolkata Knight Riders, sparking a batting collapse by the Bangalore-based franchise at Eden Gardens.

This year is looking different for RCB: Irfan Pathan

Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has made an interesting statement about the RCB superstar. Pathan believes there is no guarantee that Kohli will continue his free-scoring streak, and should not open for the Men in Red and Black in the ongoing IPL.

“This year is looking different for RCB as runs are coming out of Virat Kohli’s bat in the first few games. But it is no guarantee that he will continue scoring at the same pace (or for the remainder of the season) and win you every game,” Pathan said on Star Sports.

“In a tournament like this, other batters in the RCB squad will have to be ready for the challenge and justify their talents and roles. Also, I don’t think Kohli should be opening the batting for RCB,” the former Indian all-rounder added.

In the meantime, RCB opener Kohli has scored 103 runs in the first two IPL 2023 matches. He is also 5 catches away from reaching 100 in the IPL. Virat is also 71 runs short of 11,500 runs in T20 cricket. The former RCB captain has 6,727 runs in 225 RCB matches.

The 2016 runner-ups have made it to the finals three times in the past 15 seasons, but have not gotten their hands on the trophy. The team led by Faf du Plessis will look to get some consistent performances and win their first-ever title in the tournament.