Australian cricket star Steve Smith has voiced his support for the selection of Virat Kohli in the Indian squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024.
Whether Virat Kohli will be named to India’s side to compete in the T20 World Cup, which will take place in June of 2024 is reportedly up in the air. Yet, the former Australian captain Steven Smith has spoken out in favour of the Delhi batsman, elaborating on why Kohli is deserving of a position in the renowned tournament.
Many have voiced their disapproval of Kohli’s T20 strike rate. While he has been a steady run scorer, his pace of scoring has been inconsistent. From 2020 to 2022, he had strike rates of 121.35, 119.46, and 115.99 in the Indian Premier League. Nevertheless, Kohli took care of this issue last year, achieving a remarkable strike rate of 139.82 runs in 14 matches, and scoring 639 runs.
Smith has publicly supported the selection of the former India skipper in India’s T20 World Cup roster. Smith and Kohli were both highly regarded as elite batsmen of their time. It can be difficult for batsmen to keep up high strike rates in certain conditions, the Australian maestro pointed out, but Kohli adjusts his approach to fit the match situation.
“He plays the situation. Some wickets you play on, your strike rate doesn’t need to be high. We’ve seen Virat play some masterclass innings and get his team over the line, whether it is for RCB or for India. I’ve been in the opposition and he has done it against us on numerous occasions,” Smith said on Star Sports.
“He (Kohli) plays extremely well under pressure. He loves that. It is such players that you want in your team when you go to the World Cup and face pressure situations. You want the experienced players who stand up in those situations and Virat is certainly one of those,” he added.
After a break of 14 months, Kohli made his comeback to T20I cricket for the Indian team in January, playing against Afghanistan in a three-match series at home.
On Tuesday, at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Captains Faf du Plessis, Smriti Mandhana, and cricket star Virat Kohli revealed the fresh identity of RCB – Royal Challengers Bengaluru, along with its new jersey. This unveiling took place during the mesmerizing RCB Unbox 2024 event, confirming the long-speculated name change to Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The focus now shifts to the upcoming IPL 2024, where the Royal Challengers Bengaluru squad aims to prove their critics wrong with stellar performances on the field. Led by Faf du Plessis, the team will commence their IPL 2024 journey on Friday, March 22, facing off against the Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chepauk.
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