Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri believes Virat Kohli’s ability to bat risk-free and rotate the strike in the middle overs makes him an ODI great. Kohli has consistently performed in the 50-over version, and his record while chasing speaks for itself.
The talisman scored an unbeaten knock of 100 runs off 111 balls in the high-octane clash against Pakistan in the group stage of the Champions Trophy. The veteran batter also scored a match-winning knock of 84 runs off 98 balls in the semifinal game against Australia.
Before the final, Kohli has scored 217 runs in four matches of the Champions Trophy 2025 at an average of 72.33 and a strike rate of 83.14.
Shastri reckons Kohli was trying too hard to outdo himself in the last two-three years but he is back to his best.
Ravi Shastri said on ICC Review, “His discipline, his awareness of match situations. I thought he tried to get ahead of himself in the last three or four years, where he was trying to outdo what he’s good at and sometimes, it can catch up on you. But he’s back to what he does best, which is take the singles, hit the ball along the ground, if necessary, go for the big one. Some of the greatest players who played the one-day game, especially in the chase, are guys who can do that. When you pick up singles with ease, there’s no pressure.”
Shastri, who shares a great bonhomie with Kohli, compared the batter with legendary players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Novak Djokovic, and Rafael Nadal.
Shastri added, “You know people (like to) watch sport when they watch a sportsman with energy. Whether his name is (Cristiano) Ronaldo or it’s (Lionel) Messi or whether it’s a (Novak) Djokovic or whether it’s (Rafael) Nadal, that energy that they bring in – there’s a certain kind of charisma and it rubs off on other people. They want to watch this guy play. It just goes to show the amount of sacrifice an individual makes. I saw that with Tendulkar, loved his food, loved to do things that the other boys wanted to do, but said no.”
Kohli is going to hold the key in the all-important final against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy.
