"There is no shortcut to success" - Aakash Chopra on Virat Kohli's extended practice ahead of IND vs PAK 2025 Champions Trophy clash
Former India player Aakash Chopra has noted that Virat Kohli had a prolonged practice session ahead of the Men in Blue's 2025 Champions Trophy clash against Pakistan. He opined that the ace Indian batter realizes he is not at his best and needs to spend more time at the nets.
India will face Pakistan in their second Group A game in Dubai on Sunday, February 23. Kohli scored 22 runs off 38 deliveries in the Men in Blue's six-wicket in their tournament opener against Bangladesh at the same venue three days ago.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the former India opener noted that Kohli's extended practice implies he is aware of the need to put in the hard yards.
"Kohli reached for practice before the team came. He brought his bowlers along with him. He practiced against leg spin, left-arm spin and the sidearm. He practiced a lot. The biggest thing it tells is it's an acceptance that he is not in prime form and needs to work harder because there is no shortcut to success," he said (10:30).
Chopra highlighted that even the greatest players need to return to basics when they are not at their best.
"You need to work hard no matter how big a player you might be. When you are not scoring runs with fluency and the ball is not striking the middle of the bat that much, you have to go back to the basics. So he is trying to do that," he observed.
Virat Kohli has scored just one half-century in six ODI innings since the 2023 World Cup. He has aggregated 137 runs at an average of 22.83 in this period.
"They might get Abrar to bowl very early" - Aakash Chopra on the challenge for Virat Kohli in IND vs PAK 2025 Champions Trophy clash
![Virat Kohli fell prey to Rishad Hossain in India's 2025 Champions Trophy clash against Bangladesh. [P/C: Getty]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/65fba-17402852791522-1920.jpg?w=500)
In the same video, Aakash Chopra opined that Pakistan will likely challenge Virat Kohli with slow bowling in Sunday's 2025 Champions Trophy clash.
"What will be the challenge in front of him here? No one will give him pace. They will bowl slow to him. They will bowl cutters to him. They might get Abrar (Ahmed) to bowl very early. I feel a 260-run game suits him otherwise. Virat Kohli doesn't need to run very fast from the start," he said (11:15).
The cricketer-turned-commentator urged the modern batting great to follow his usual template and refrain from playing the big shots at the start of his innings.
"He has reached close to 14,000 ODI runs because he had set a template of giving himself time at the start before playing a long innings. We have seen him playing big shots lately, he was doing that at the nets also yesterday, but I would say stay away from them," Chopra elaborated.
Aakash Chopra reckoned that India could lose an early wicket against the new ball in the 2025 Champions Trophy clash against Pakistan. He pointed out that the Indian fans wouldn't want Virat Kohli also to lose his wicket in an attempt to play extravagant shots in such a scenario.