"I feel like footwork is the problem" - Harbhajan Singh dissects Virat Kohli's woes in England
Former India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has outlined and pointed out the issues Virat Kohli is facing in the ongoing tour of England. The Indian captain has only been able to score 124 runs across five innings at an average of 24.8 so far.
Kohli entered England on the back of a poor run of form, but still had his merits from 2018 to his advantage. It all collapsed as soon as he was exposed to the fourth stump line. Kohli has experienced difficulty in judging such deliveries from pacers, which has been evident in his dismissals in the ongoing England series.
While lauding Virat Kohli's credentials over the years and terming him as the greatest cricketer in the modern-era of cricket, Harbhajan Singh noted how the core issue lies in the way Kohli has been placing his foot. Speaking on his YouTube channel, the former Indian off-spinner said:
"The small thing I have noticed, even though Virat is such a tremendous player, is that he is getting his feet across. In the last tour, his foot was straight. When the foot is straight and facing the bowler, the body weight is naturally forward. When the foot is across, the body weight is transferred to the side. and when the head moves to the side, you tend to play the ball away from the stumps. When a player like Kohli is being caught at slips for five innings in a row, I feel like footwork is the problem."
Virat Kohli should make the best of the conditions at The Oval: Harbhajan Singh
Harbhajan Singh explained how among all of England's venues, The Oval arguably provides the best batting conditions due to the lack of lateral movement. The former off-spinner hopes for Kohli to get his 71st century at the venue. Harbhajan added:
"Big players have big egos because, if the opposition captain is scoring runs, then Kohli must also be thinking that 'I should also score a hundred, and make it a big one.' I'm hoping the century comes at The Oval, because when the runs start to flow, you see he will be a different batter altogether."
India will take on England later today (September 2) at The Oval for Day 1 of the fourth Test of the five-match series.