Virat Kohli will be worried about not scoring a century for a long time: Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra has said that Virat Kohli will be worried about not scoring an international century for a long while.
The Indian skipper's last international ton came in the pink-ball Test against Bangladesh in November 2019.
While previewing the fourth and final India-England Test on ESPNcricinfo, Aakash Chopra was asked if Virat Kohli not scoring a century would be a point of worry for the hosts.
The cricketer-turned-commentator, who had predicted a big knock from the Indian captain in the last Test in Ahmedabad, responded it would be a bigger concern for Virat Kohli himself and not so much for the team.
"It is not for India although it is better if we don't talk about the last match because the entire England batting lineup did not score 100 runs in the second innings. It is not a worry for the Indian team, they are fine. When Virat Kohli was not there, you still won in Australia. So, this team has the depth that whether Kohli is there or not, whether he scores runs or not, we have seen that this team has the ability. But he will himself be worried because it has been a long time since he has scored a century and this stays in your mind as a batsman," said Chopra.
Virat Kohli has scored 288 runs at an average of 26.18 in the six Tests he has played since his last century against Bangladesh. However, all these encounters were played on bowler-friendly surfaces in New Zealand, Australia, and even at home.
Once Virat Kohli scores a century, you will see quite a few in a row: Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra highlighted that greats like Virat Kohli, Joe Root, Steve Smith, and Kane Williamson are known to play substantial knocks.
The 43-year-old expects Kohli to go on a run-scoring spree once he bags his next century.
"This is the difference between the good and the great. The good players make a lot of 50s and 60s and then quite a few times throw away their wicket. The great players convert their fifties into hundred, one-fifty or double-hundreds. You will find the conversation rate, whether it is him, Root, Smith or Kane Williamson to be better than the rest. So, it will definitely be playing on his mind that it has been time. I feel the day he does that, you will see quite a few in a row after that," added Chopra.
The Indian batting maestro will hope to be back to his big-scoring ways in the final Test against England and take the hosts to the final of the inaugural ICC World Test Championship.