Veteran Australian cricketer Ricky Ponting has suggested to former India captain Virat Kohli that he should take some time off from cricket to regain his intensity and passion. Virat Kohli struggled in the recent five-match Test series against Australia, where he scored only 190 runs at an average of 23.75.
Kohli looked increasingly uncomfortable with balls going outside the off-stump during the series and was out that way eight times out of nine innings.
“Trying too hard is counterproductive.”
Ricky Ponting said in an interview to ICC that Virat Kohli is trying too hard, which is working against him. Referring to the Sydney Test, he said that Kohli looked very disappointed while returning to the pavilion after being out at slip in the second innings of the last match.
Ponting said:
“You can see how much he wants it. He is trying so hard that it is making batting difficult. When you put more effort into batting, you often get less success.”
Ponting gave his example
Ponting cited his own sporting experience to explain Kohli’s struggles. He said:
“I also started thinking more about not getting out at one time rather than scoring runs. This affected my game. When I was playing my best, I didn’t think about these things at all. Just thought about getting on the field and scoring runs. Now something similar is happening with Virat also.”
Weakness outside off stump
Ponting, while discussing Kohli’s dismissal pattern, said that his mental distraction was affecting his batting.
“Kohli’s body language and the way he is getting out shows that he does not want to play those balls, but the distraction of his mind is forcing him to play balls outside the off-stump.”
suggestion to take a break
Ponting said that Kohli needs to take a mental break so that he can regain his true passion and love for the game.
He said:
“Right now it looks like he has lost love for the game because he is making it too difficult. If he wants to continue playing Test cricket, he needs some rest.”
