Former Indian batsman VVS Laxman said he doesn’t see Virat Kohli’s move to drop himself at number four working for India in the ongoing series against Australia. After hinting that he might not bat at his original number three position to accommodate both in-form Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul in the playing XI, Kohli on Tuesday demoted himself to number four in the first ODI against Australia at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
The move, however, backfired for India as Kohli was dismissed cheaply by Adam Zampa after scoring 16 off 14 balls. After Rohit Sharma perished early on the top, Shikhar Dhawan played a sensible knock of 74 runs and added 123 runs for the second wicket with KL Rahul, who scored a fine 47 off 61 balls. The duo steadied the ship for India but after their dismissal, the onus fell on Kohli, who departed on a low-key score.
“Especially in a 3-match series. You have to have your best game plan, best strategy in the 1st match. But I don’t see this (Kohli batting at number 4) working,” VVS Laxman said.
“Virat Kohli is a world-class player. Sachin Tendulkar was the best player world cricket has seen. Sachin never ever relished batting at No. 4. You want your best batsman to play the maximum number of deliveries. You want your best batsman to set the game up and finish the game, especially against a quality attack. And if there is any team where India cannot afford to experiment, it is this Australian bowling line-up,” he added.
