Former Australia captain Aaron Finch on Wednesday slammed critics for questioning Indian batsman Virat Kohli’s place in the Men in Blue’s T20I lineup, calling the chatter surrounding his spot ‘the biggest nonsense he has ever heard ‘. As the ICC T20 World Cup scheduled to take place in the West Indies/USA on June 1 draws closer and the fever of the Indian Premier League (IPL) intensifies, talk surrounding Virat’s approach in T20 cricket has generated mixed debates. While many fans/pundits have thrown their support behind Virat due to his stature, impressive T20I resume and experience, some have questioned whether his style, which leans slightly towards a more conservative ground, is suitable for modern, hard-hitting T20 cricket in the USA which batters often launch big sixes from ball one.
Speaking on ESPN’s programme, Finch said: “I can’t understand that whenever there is an ICC event, irrespective of the format, every time people talk about Virat Kohli and whether he is under pressure for his place. This is the biggest piece of nonsense. I ever heard it. He’s the greatest white ball player I’ve ever seen.”
“It doesn’t matter if he’s hitting at 140 and other guys are hitting at 160, when you pick up a team you’re picking up a guy who gets the job done day in and day out for his team in big games. It’s ridiculous that we continue to have this conversation feed,” he added.
During his side’s previous IPL match against Punjab Kings (PBKS), Virat dismissed critics with a majestic 77 in 49 balls, with 11 fours and two sixes. Scoring at a strike rate of over 157, Virat went hard from ball one, smashing Sam Curran for four boundaries in the first over himself while chasing 177. Another notable highlight of his batting was that he could beat bowlers very well during the middle of the match. overs and even choosing the air route.
After his match-winning knock, Virat acknowledged that amid all the talk surrounding his spot, his name is largely being used to promote the shortest format of the game in the US ahead of the T20 World Cup through advertisements, and he has said it ” still” in T20 cricket. He also said that although he tries to go hard from the start, the fall of wickets makes him play situation by situation.
“I know my name is often used these days to promote the T20 game around the world when it comes to T20 cricket, but I think I still have it,” Virat said during the post-match presentation.
“In T20 I open up and try to give the team a flying start. But when the wickets start falling, you also have to understand the conditions. The wicket here was not as calm as normal. It was a bit two – pace. I had to play the right cricket shots, couldn’t hit the balls over the line. I tried a few, felt like I needed big hits at the other end, which didn’t happen as Maxi (Glenn Maxwell) and Anuj Rawat ) was gone quickly,” he added.
Virat is the highest run-getter in T20I cricket. In 117 matches he scored 4,037 runs at an average of 51.75 and a strike rate of over 138, with a century and 37 fifties in 109 innings. His best score is 122*.
He is also the highest run-scorer in IPL history. In 239 matches and 231 innings, he scored 7,361 runs at an average of 37.36, with seven centuries and 51 fifties. His runs have a strike rate of 130.16.
Moreover, Virat is the most decorated batsman in the history of the ICC T20 World Cup and is the leading run-scorer. In 27 T20 World Cup matches, Virat has scored 1,141 runs at an average of 81.50 and a strike rate of 131.30, with 14 half-centuries in 25 innings. His best score is 89*. He was also the ‘Player of the Tournament’ in the 2014 (319 runs in six matches at an average of 106.33 with four fifties) and 2016 (273 runs in five matches at an average of 136.5 with three 1950s), in which India finished as runners-up and semi-finalists respectively. He finished as the leading run-scorer in 2014. During the successful nine-inning run chases of the tournament, Virat averaged 518 as he was dismissed only once. Of these nine innings, seven are fifties.
In the 2022 edition in Australia, Virat finished as the leading run-getter, with 296 runs in six matches at an average of 98.66 and a strike rate of 136.40, with four fifties. His knock of 82* against Pakistan in a tough chase of 160 runs in Melbourne is also considered one of the best T20I knocks ever played.
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