"Young cricketers coming through will learn from Virat Kohli" - Gautam Gambhir praises star batter for match-winning 85 against Australia
Former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir lavished praise on star batter Virat Kohli for his match-winning knock of 85 from 116 deliveries in their 2023 World Cup opener against Australia in Chennai.
Coming in with the side struggling at 2/1 and further slipping to 2/3, the 34-year-old brought out another one of his chasing masterclasses with six boundaries and several singles and twos. Kohli also stitched a game-changing partnership of 165 with wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul to dig India out of the hole.
Speaking to Star Sports post-game, Gambhir felt Kohli's knock was a lesson for the younger players on how to absorb pressure and build an innings when playing big shots isn't a possibility.
"Imagine when you're 2 or 3 down for two. You can't go out there and hit a long ball. You will still need to be able to absorb the pressure and try and rotate those strikes. And I'm sure these young cricketers coming through will learn from Virat Kohli. That is very important and that is why he's so consistent," said Gambhir.
"And I'm sure I think a lot of these young cricketers in the dressing room will learn the importance of fitness, the importance of running between the wicket and the importance of how to rotate strike in the middle as well, because with this new format with T20 cricket, a lot of these new guys want to keep hitting the ball out of the ground.," he added.
Kohli became the fastest to 13,000 ODI runs in the recent Asia Cup and boasts an incredible overall average of 57.50 with 47 centuries, just two shy of Sachin Tendulkar's record of 49.
It was the champion batter's ninth 50+ score in 27 World Cup games, including two centuries.
"It's just the way you read the game" - Gautam Gambhir
Gautam Gambhir further praised Virat Kohli for his ability to read the game well in run-chases and his tremendous self-belief.
The 34-year-old boasts a stunning record in successful run-chases, with over 5,500 runs at an average of 88.98 with an astonishing 22 centuries.
"It's just the way you read the game. I think it's very important. First, when you have to chase those big totals, you got to be able to absorb the pressure. You should have this self-belief, you can chase it down from any situation and position and, more importantly, when he does that in one-day cricket, you have got to realise it's not about hitting those big shots," said Gambhir.
Gambhir also emphasized the importance of rotating strikes and playing lesser dot deliveries.
"It's about running between the wickets. It's about rotating the strike. It's about never putting yourself under pressure. The lesser dot balls you play, the better position you're in, because you know that with these new rules, with five fielders inside and two new balls with any time to accelerate," stated Gambhir.
"But when your team is under pressure, that low risk cricket from there on, if you can continue to build that momentum, continue to build that foundation and that is exactly what he has done. He plays the ball. He was on 70-odd with only 5 boundaries. So, that just shows the ability to play spin and more importantly, the ability to rotate the strike against spin," concluded Gambhir.
Kohli fell short of his 48th ODI century and a third ton in World Cups when he pulled Josh Hazlewood straight to mid-wicket. Nevertheless, his knock ensured India were off to an ideal start to their 2023 World Cup campaign with a comfortable win against the five-time World Champions.
Team India will next face off against Afghanistan in Delhi on Wednesday, October 11.