Like Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli feels more at home away from home: Sanjay Manjrekar
Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar reckons Virat Kohli doesn't quite enjoy batting in Test matches in home conditions. According to him, like Sachin Tendulkar, Kohli also looks more at ease in overseas conditions.
Team India are in a dominant position against Bangladesh in the first Test, played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. They went to stumps on Day 2 at 81-3 in their second innings, with a huge lead of 308 runs.
Kohli, who was dismissed by pacer Hasan Mahmud for six in the first innings, was out lbw to off-spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz for 17 in the second essay. The 35-year-old has struggled for runs lately against spinners and had a tough time in the white-ball series in Sri Lanka.
During a discussion on ESPNcricinfo on the former India captain's woes against spin bowling, Manjrekar opined that Kohli looks like someone who would prefer batting in Test matches away from home. The 59-year-old commented:
"He is not enjoying batting in India as much. Like Tendulkar, I think he feels more at home away from home. We saw that in South Africa, how well he played. He was by far India's best batter. So, that's fine. Better to get runs away from home than at home."
Kohli registered scores of 38, 76, 46, and 12 during the two-match Test series in South Africa, which ended in a 1-1 draw at the start of the year. Incidentally, the right-handed batter was trapped lbw by spinners in all three matches of the one-day series in Sri Lanka held in early August.
Virat Kohli: Home vs Away record in Test matches
The ongoing clash in Chennai is Kohli's 51st home Test. He has scored 4,167 runs at an average of 58.69, with 14 hundreds. Over the last few years, though, his Test numbers at home have significantly dipped. The former India captain averaged in the 20s in home Tests in 2021 and 2022.
Away from home (excluding neutral venues), Kohli has featured in 61 Test matches and has notched up 4,584 runs at an average of 42.84, with 15 centuries. The right-handed batter has enjoyed batting in Australia, where he has notched up six Test tons. He also has two Test centuries in England and two in South Africa.