IPL 2024 didn’t get off to a flying start for Virat Kohli, and his strike rate questioned by many turned out to be just the fuel he needed to reignite his hunger which eventually won him the Orange Cap.
Karthik has seen from close quarters, Kohli’s rise as one of the most iconic figures in world cricket, both with RCB and Team India. Discussing it on Cricbuzz, Karthik said that Kohli turned it around when he scored 741 runs in IPL 2014 and added that he always thrives on situations where he has to prove people wrong such as when Simon Doull had questioned his strike rate during the initial part of just-concluded IPL season.
“I can write a book about how this year was for Virat Kohli – (IPL 2024).” “He began alright but I think guys like Simon and other commentators really got into him.” And you don’t want to see that side of Virat Kohli.
“That’s what I feel happens. He wants some things whether intentionally or not so that he does well. He likes proving people wrong. It fills his heart though he might never say it. He is erupting like a hot volcano which burns anyone who approaches him closely. This is not new.”
Since the inception of IPL in 2008, RCB have never claimed the title in all those years.“Even after all this time, he still stands by them.” That is why Karthik believes that RCB owe everything they’ve achieved so far to Kohli.
“You talk about RCB, their success…”It is not going to happen without this man, and not necessarily because of how good a batsman he is supposed to be.“And then look at how far back fielders are pushed,” said Karthik.
The recently retired wicketkeeper-batsman then jokingly commented on the way Kohli motivates his RCB teammates during the timeout.
“God, if you had a mic in one of those timeouts!” “There would have been so many bleeps on this one. And ‘Ben Stokes’ will be thrown out there.” “But beyond all that, he brings such intensity and expects every player to do it, my god I salute him! Stand up and clap for him doing that is in the 17th year of IPL. He says it as it is, so they better be thankful that RCB has a person like him inside them because he’s built differently.”
Doull, a player-turned-commentator, was also engaged in the conversation on Cricbuzz; he admitted to having questioned Kohli’s strike rate but could not understand why people tend to take a critical comment about someone’s game that far as he had even received death threats for this. He questioned how viewers perceive his work as an expert and match analyst when it is part of his job description.
“I see in Virat Kohli a brilliant player who should be dominating more than what has happened now. That was my point around it. This is why I discussed his strike rate. Sometimes, it seemed like he was scared of getting out because he worried what might catch up with him behind instead of just thinking ‘I am so good’. And indeed, he did very well,” Doull said.
“About Virat Kohli I have said thousand wonderful things and then I say one thing which is slightly negative or can be misinterpreted as negative and then I get death threats. That’s what happened.”
“It never gets personal”, Doull added.
“We have great conversations. We have sat down together at the toss, we have talked after games – that kind of thing’s never been an issue. It’s not something personal,” New Zealandersaid.
Karthik wrapped up by urging fans to know the difference between personal and cricketing viewpoints.
“Somewhere Indian fans should do the distinction between people taking him (Kohli) on personally and people talking about the cricketing side of him. In my opinion Virat likes it if you can find a difference” Karthik added .
