"He's in his head a little bit"- Former RCB teammate's huge take on Virat Kohli's struggles after BAN vs IND 2025 Champions Trophy clash

Former Indian batter Robin Uthappa believes Virat Kohli is more focused on middling the ball than scoring runs after another sub-par performance in the Bangladesh clash of the 2025 Champions Trophy in Dubai. The 36-year-old looked out of sorts throughout his stay before being dismissed for a 38-ball 22.

Kohli had a forgettable 2024 season in international cricket, averaging under 22 in 23 outings with a lone century. His 2025 hasn't been much better, with an average of 20.40 in four matches.

Kohli's poor form played a massive role in India's back-to-back Test series defeats against New Zealand and Australia. While many expected the champion batter to score big in his favorite ODI format, he has averaged under 27 over the three innings this year.

Talking about Kohli following the India-Bangladesh contest on Star Sports, Uthappa said [quoted by India Today]:

"Virat, the great batter that he is, will have to address himself because, I think in a sense he's in his head a little bit. It feels like that from the outside. It feels like he's looking to middle the ball versus when he actually is batting well, he's looking to get runs. He's not worried about middling the ball because the intent itself is different."

He added:

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"And I think he's trying to break free from that space of trying to middle the ball versus scoring runs and he's finding himself caught in between is what I'm feeling from the outside. I think it's a matter of time, the minute he frees his head up and just goes out there and expresses himself, the runs will flow."

Despite Kohli's struggles, Team India defeated Bangladesh comfortably by six wickets to open their 2025 Champions Trophy campaign. Chasing 229, the Men in Blue were propelled by a brilliant 101* from Shubman Gill as they achieved the target in the 47th over.

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"Slight technical adjustment that he needs to make" - Robin Uthappa

Kohli found the going tough against the Bangladesh spinners in Dubai [Credit: Getty]

Robin Uthappa feels Virat Kohli's lack of form over the past year has stemmed from several technical frailties about his bat angle, among other aspects.

Renowned for his ability to pile on three-figure scores for fun, Kohli has scored only a lone century across formats over his last 27 matches since the start of 2024.

I do think there's a slight technical adjustment that he needs to make. Generally, his bat comes from the 2nd slip or 3rd slip. When he scored most of his runs, his bat generally comes from the 2nd or 3rd slip. Right now you see it's coming from right at the wicketkeeper or 1st slip. And from there, every time he looks to play the cover driver or on the offside, he's going to not come with a full face of his bat. He's gonna come with maybe 50-60% of his bat, and that also will make that cover driver his favorite shot, a very dangerous shot to play," said Uthappa.

He concluded:

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"So, it's something that he will have to kind of figure out, and I hope someone speaks to him about it and helps him figure that piece out, because I think that one bit will make a huge difference. I think he's searching for his feel and form, and it's a very natural thing to happen when you're, when you are short of runs, and I think it's a matter of time."

Team India will hope Kohli returns to his best when they take on arch-rivals Pakistan in their next encounter on February 23.

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