Former Pakistani skipper Misbah ul Haq has attributed ex-Indian captain Virat Kohli’s suffering form to his mental issues. Defining technical glitches in his batting, Misbah discussing conflicts in Kohli’s mind says a person’s mind and body cannot work together.
He says no matter how great a player is, once the automation is simulated by too many noises in the head, the rhythm to react to and play the ball is adversely affected. Notably, Kohli’s striving form in the run race is not new. The ex-captain has been struggling to register his 71st international century, but barely gets close to a half-ton.
It was assumed the player has been underperforming due to captaincy pressure. Analyzing the problems, he skipped the limited-overs captainship and was later sacked by the board from Test captaincy as well. However, easing the burden has not eased his game, as the drought commences.
“When there are too many noises in the head, then your mind and body’s coordination which helps you to react and play the ball gets broken. No matter how great you are, that automation gets affected. It’s natural. Generally, we talk about Virat Kohli chasing the ball away from the off-stump, nicking the ball at fourth or fifth stumps, we see the technical fault, but why is he doing that? There’s a mental issue behind it.”
Misbah, who retired as head coach of the team in 2021, also said that Kohli has ego issues. According to him, the former Indian skipper believes he can dominate the bowling line-up, whereas, it is not the case ‘always’.
“He is trying to dominate. Virat Kohli has got ego, and pride that ‘I have to dominate’. But what is happening is, somewhere were the other, you are over-trying. You go out of your zone. The pressure is getting mounted.”
Misbah also has some advice for Kohli – he says despite struggling, he should return to domestic cricket getting rid of unnecessary pressure. It must be noted Kohli became Matthew Potts’ prey and could only score 11 runs from 19 deliveries during the first inning of rescheduled Ind vs Eng fifth Test.
Also, see:
Misbah ul Haq reveals a secret about Ramiz Raja
