Kohli will return to form in the T20I series against WI: Rathour

Vikram Rathour, India’s batting coach, stated on Monday that Virat Kohli’s protracted slump is not a problem for the Rohit Sharma-led squad ahead of the next T20I series against the West Indies in Kolkata.

The 33-year-old, whose reign as India’s captain across formats ended last month, had a dismal run in the just-finished three-match ODI series, scoring 26 runs at an average of 8.6 and a best of 18. Rathour stated that it does not indicate a lack of form because Kohli has been doing well in the nets.

‘I do not believe he is going through a lean phase. I realize he had a horrible series against the West Indies (in one-day internationals), but there was no talk “Rathour stated this at a media engagement ahead of the three-match T20I series, which begins on Wednesday at Eden Gardens.

Kohli last scored a century in one-day internationals against the West Indies in August 2019, at Port of Spain, and since then, he has made 10 50-plus runs but has failed to convert them into a ton. He has played in nine One-Day Internationals (ODIs) in the last year, scoring a total of 271 runs.

“He’s hitting pretty well in the nets, and he’s putting in a lot of work. We are looking forward to… I’m confident that he’ll be back among runs in one of these innings “said the hitting instructor, emphasizing his support for the former captain.

The series is viewed as India’s warm-up for the T20 World Cup, which will be held in Australia in October, and Rathour is optimistic that the batters will put in a solid performance.

“I don’t think we’ll have any problems with the batting we have. In those situations, all of our hitters are capable of hitting well.

“Of course, it is the current focus. We’re preparing for the World Cup in Australia…unfortunately, we’re dealing with some injuries right now, so a few people are missing out.

 “It’s tough to say what their involvement will be until we have everyone accessible. But, for the time being, that is the emphasis. We’ve begun preparing for our trip to Australia “He stated.