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Former Indian cricketer and ex-chief selector Chetan Sharma has backed star Indian batter Virat Kohli, despite his patchy form, stating that Kohli will finish the ongoing series against Australia with three centuries.
The fourth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series is scheduled to take place in Melbourne from December 26. Virat, who scored a century in the first Test at Perth, has struggled to make an impact in the series, managing just 26 runs in his other four innings. His form across all formats this year has been underwhelming. Speaking to ANI, Chetan Sharma described Virat's struggles as a temporary phase. "He is a player who has achieved so much for us, which raises our expectations. I am confident he will perform well. Let's hope he scores two more centuries in the next two matches. I had predicted before the series that he would score three centuries in Australia," he said. In 2023, Virat has scored 614 runs across formats at an average of 21.92, with a solitary century and two fifties, and a highest score of 100*. In nine Tests, he has scored 376 runs at an average of 25.06, with one century and one fifty in 17 innings, and a best score of 100*. The 2020s have been challenging for Virat in Test cricket. In 37 matches and 64 innings this decade, he has accumulated 1,964 runs at an average of 31.67, with three centuries, nine fifties, and a highest score of 186. In the ongoing ICC World Test Championship cycle, Virat has scored 687 runs in 12 matches and 21 innings, averaging 36.15, with two centuries, three fifties, and a top score of 121. Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Travis Head (vc), Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster. India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Devdutt Padikkal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar. Reserves: Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed, Yash Dayal. (ANI)
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