3 concerning statistics regarding Virat Kohli's recent Test form
Team India batter Virat Kohli was dismissed for just one run on Day 1 of the first Test against Bangladesh on Wednesday, December 14.
Coming into bat at the fall of KL Rahul's wicket with the score reading 45/2, Kohli needed to get stuck in and play a gritty knock. However, after just four balls at the crease, Taijul Islam got a delivery to spin sharply away from the batter, who was rapped on the pads.
Kohli burned a review on his way back to the pavilion as replays showed that the ball pitched in line. His dismissal was the latest in a series of disappointing displays in red-ball cricket, with the 34-year-old clearly not at his best.
Here are three concerning statistics regarding Virat Kohli's recent Test form.
#3 Virat Kohli doesn't have a Test century since 2019
Virat Kohli's century drought has been discussed on end. The batter set his T20I record straight with a terrific effort against Afghanistan in the 2022 Asia Cup before managing to notch up his first ODI century in three years in the third ODI against Bangladesh recently.
In Tests, however, Kohli has been unable to breach the three-figure mark since November 2019, when he achieved the milestone in the pink-ball Test against the Tigers. The former Indian skipper has amassed 27 hundreds in the format, so his barren run is certainly a concern. More to the point...
#2 Virat Kohli has only six 50s since his last century in Test cricket
Virat Kohli seemed to be able to rack up 50-plus scores consistently in ODI cricket, even if he didn't score centuries. But in Tests, the 34-year-old has crossed the 50-run mark only six times since the start of 2020.
Kohli has played 33 Test innings since his last century, which was also his final red-ball outing of 2019. In the three calendar years that have followed, he has scored only six fifties in 33 innings! Four of those came away from home in challenging conditions like Australia, South Africa and England.
However, Kohli has clearly been unable to spend sustained periods of time at the crease. His problem used to be lapses of concentration while fishing at wide deliveries, but are there other concerns too?
#1 Virat Kohli's average against spin over the last two years has been dismal
Virat Kohli, for most of his decorated career, has been an excellent defensive player of spin. His Test average of 57.51 in Asia reflects the same.
But over the last few years, Kohli's spin game has deteriorated significantly. Not just in the shorter formats, where he has been unable to find boundaries at will, but in Test cricket as well. The right-handed batter has often been left bamboozled by straightforward deliveries that he would've easily negotiated in his prime.
In 2022, Kohli's average against spin is a woeful 17.25, with four dismissals in six innings. Last year, it was 29.42, with seven dismissals in 12 innings. This is in sharp contrast to 2019, when the batter averaged a whopping 147.5 with only two dismissals from seven innings.
Clearly, Kohli hasn't been at his confident best against the spinners. He will be seriously challenged by Bangladesh on this tour.