“If I have the time, I’ll go and play there” - When Virat Kohli wanted to play county cricket before 2018 England tour
Virat Kohli has been arguably the busiest cricketer over the past decade, considering his prowess and presence across formats for Team India and his participation in the IPL since its inception. It meant the 35-year-old had enjoyed no time for English county cricket like other past and present batters to improve their technique against the moving ball.
However, two years before the 2018 tour of England, Kohli expressed his desire to play county cricket to prepare for the stiffer challenges against the English bowlers in the Tests. The champion batter endured a tormented 2014 English tour, scoring only 134 runs at an average of 13.40 in the five Tests.
Talking to reporters in 2016, Kohli said as quoted by ESPN Cricinfo:
"If I have a chance, I would love to do that; love to be there, say a month or a month and a half and get used to playing in those conditions, understand how the wickets behave in that particular phase of the year. I have actually been thinking about it, trying to work out how I can make it happen. Most definitely, if I have the time I'll go and play there."
He added:
"I think those things matter a lot. Preparation time is something, which is very crucial for any side. So yeah, if I have the opportunity to go there a few days before the start that will be great."
To Kohli's credit, he signed up with Surrey for a county stint in May 2018 to prepare for the five-Test series in England.
However, a neck injury prevented the same, and the champion batter went to battle against England in the Test matches that started in August.
Virat Kohli enjoyed a stunning 2018 Test tour of England
Despite skipping his much-anticipated county stint with Surrey, Virat Kohli righted the wrong of the horrific 2014 England tour in 2018.
The stylish batter finished the five-test series as the leading run-scorer with 593 runs at an average of almost 60. Kohli made his intentions clear from the get-go, scoring a brilliant 149 in the first innings of the opening Test at Edgbaston.
He almost scored twin centuries in the third Test at Nottingham with 97 and 103 in the two innings as India scripted a 203-run win to reduce the series deficit to 1-2. Kohli continued his consistent run with 40+ scores in three of the final four innings of the series even as India suffered defeats in the final two Tests to lose by a 1-4 margin.
Overall, Kohli boasts a mediocre record in Tests in England with an average of 33.21 in 17 outings, including two centuries and five fifties.