India legend Kapil Dev is confident that Virat Kohli will continue to pile on the runs despite his century drought but has cautioned the skipper against over-aggression.
Kapil Dev Advice to Kohli
“I expect him to excel,” Kapil told Mid-Day. “Can you really shackle him? He is a natural when it comes to adapting but I would caution him to not be over-aggressive. He will have to measure it session by session. He’ll be better off waiting for his moments of dominance.”
“He will get his runs with a bit of patience. Trying too hard and too early doesn’t work in England where you need to watch the movement of the ball. If you play seam and swing well, show patience, you will succeed in England,” he added.
More than personal milestones, Kohli will be focused on leading his team to a series victory in England which they last managed in 2007. Last time, India were beaten 4-1 in a five-match series.
Before 2007, it was in 1986 under the captaincy of Kapil that India had registered a series win in England.
The 62-year-old has said it won’t be an easy task for the touring party to get the better of England as they are quite good in their own conditions.
“I want this team to remember that England in England is tough. They are a very good team when playing at home but then, it will also depend on how the Indian bowlers adapt to the conditions and pitches. The swing will be very rewarding and here I feel England are one step ahead of India,” Kapil said.
During the 2018 Test series in England, Virat Kohli corrected an anomaly. Despite his surreal consistency across formats, Kohli was always reminded of not having scored runs in England with his struggles during the 2014 tour being a constant reminder when he managed a mere 135 runs in 10 innings.
However, in 2018, Kohli, who had by then established his reputation as the world’s premier batter across formats, went on to accumulate 593 runs from five Tests. Now, he’s all set for his third Test tour of the country with India set to plat six matches starting with the final of the ICC World Test Championship in Southampton next month.
