India vs West Indies 2018: Why Kohli should not rest himself for the remaining three ODIs
No sooner had Virat Kohli scored his 37th ODI hundred than the experts in the commentary box and in television studios, started discussing of how he should think of resting in the last two or even possibly three matches. Going by Kohli’s record in recent times, there is a realistic possibility that he may ‘rest’ himself in at least a couple of matches in this series, to give chances to an untested middle order.
But one would like to argue that such a proposal does not help the cause of Indian cricket, in terms of India’s preparation for the 2019 World Cup or otherwise. In today’s match, the middle order got their chance, and apart from the diminutive Ambati Rayudu, the others flopped. Dhoni’s recent struggles with bat show no signs of ending soon too and his under-study, the young Rishabh Pant, showed his inexperience in not playing according to the situation.
With 4 wickets down, and still a lot of overs to go, he played an ugly hoick to gift away his wicket. He is new to international cricket, so one would not like to be overtly critical. But the fact is he got his opportunity and did not make it count.
If Kohli does not play a few matches, there is no guarantee that the middle order will get the opportunity and then grasp it too. On the flip side, Kohli can play and even then they will get the opportunity to showcase their skills and temperament, as was the case today. However, with Kohli being in the side, India is almost certain to win. So, that should surely be a factor too in Kohli playing all the matches.
Virat Kohli, as cricket pundits rightly point out, sets a very standard for himself and for the team. So, it’s time he sets another one, despite what others say. Let him set a target of scoring a hundred in every single match he plays in this series.
Going by the looks of it, West Indies' batting looks pretty decent and they would want to set a good enough target for the Indian top order, who would be itching to get hundreds. If either or both of Dhawan and Rohit Sharma fall early, Kohli gets a chance to score a hundred. But if they both play deep, then India wins anyway.
It’s not often that one gets to see a player of Virat Kohli’s stature on the field. He is a once-in-a-generation kind of player. So, one just hopes that he does not take a break to allow others to score, rather he takes the responsibility on himself to see India through in all these matches, and in the process score as many hundreds as possible in this series – possibly even five. Maybe he could score his first double hundred, which he missed out in the second ODI, with overs running out.
As for taking rest, or having a break to recharge his battery, there are 50 days of IPL before the World Cup, where he could consider giving himself that much-deserved break to be fresh and ready for the World Cup.