"Virat Kohli must be sitting at the hotel pretty frustrated" - Shaun Pollock after Day 1 of 1st India vs South Africa Test
Shaun Pollock feels Virat Kohli would be 'really, really disappointed' and frustrated because of the way he got out on Day 1 of the first India vs South Africa Test.
After collecting 35 watchful runs, the Indian captain chased a wide outswinger from Lungi Ngidi, straight to first slip. That was a dismissal in line with his recent trend of throwing away good starts. While the wicket didn't hurt the visitors much - they ended Day 1 at 272-3 - it ramped up the scrutiny on Kohli by another notch.
Speaking to Cricbuzz after the day's play, Pollock said:
"Looking at his dismissal, he's got to be really, really disappointed. He looked in such good touch; he looked so motivated; his feet were moving nicely. and he was getting in really strong positions. To have chased that delivery on 35, almost when he was in set and looked like he was going to get a big score, I think he must be sitting at the hotel pretty frustrated at the fact that he got out in that fashion."
Kohli's wicket was surprising, as he was leaving the ball well throughout his knock, and only drove ones that were either too full or closer to his stumps. While the Proteas tried out the outside off-stump line before the wicket, there was no obvious setup from Nigidi to force Kohli to play far away from his body.
Year by year average of Virat Kohli in Tests from 2017. https://t.co/KBmVnyOryw
Kohli is averaging under 30 in Tests this year, and has now got just one more innings to improve that number. However, even if he does, this year is likely to be his third-worst in terms of stats since his Test debut ten years ago.
"Credit to Dravid and Kohli for backing Ajinkya Rahane" - Dinesh Karthik
Unlike Kohli, his former red-ball deputy Ajinkya Rahane looked a step closer to breaking his poor rut of form on Sunday.
He came to bat at 199-3, and ended the day with a brisk 81-ball 40. Over four-fifths of his runs came via boundaries, as Rahane upped the visitors' run rate to take them to a comfortable position by Stumps.
No one:
Rahane on Boxing Day: https://t.co/C4f6LWpmId
In the same interaction, wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik credited Kohli and head coach Rahul Dravid for backing the experienced Ajinkya Rahane. He admitted that Rahane getting a long rope might be a bit unfair on Shreyas Iyer and Hanuma Vihari, but said it is part and parcel of being a part of a strong side.
Karthik said:
"When you are going with six batters, I think they wanted to rely on experience because that's what Ajinkya Rahane brings to the table. I love the intent with which he bats. You've got to understand when you cross 30, there's a lot of pressure as a batter; the whole country is probably speaking that you shouldn't play."
"But for him to come and play with the intent he's played, credit to Dravid and Kohli for backing him. Is it a bit unfair to Shreyas and Hanuma Vihari? Maybe, but that's always the case when you have a strong team; you will leave out somebody who's going to be disappointed."
Karthik added:
"...But I am happy for Rahane because he needs the runs. What I am even more happy about is the intent he showed. He was ready to play the shots that he was good at; he wasn't meek at any point. and I liked that."
India will look to build on their Day-1 exploits and put up a match-winning first-innings score when play resumes at 1:30 PM IST on Monday.