The Virat Kohli rut: A bag of golden ducks, an unwanted record and an unusual struggle for form
Virat Kohli’s tally of runs in the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League stands at 216 from 12 games after he regered his third golden duck of the season ( his sixth overall in the tournament) on the weekend against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Three golden ducks, three single-digit scores and just one score above 50, is not something that you associate with someone of Kohli’s calibre. After all, he is one of India’s most accomplished batter, with more than 10,000 runs under his belt in limited-overs formats.
Virat Kohli walks back to the pavilion. (Source: iplt20.com)
After he failed to open his tally against SRH, the 33-year-old equalised an unwanted record of having the most number of golden ducks for a player in a season (3). He became the 13th player to reger 3 golden ducks in an IPL season.
Some of the other names featuring on this unwanted l are, Amit Mishra, Ashish Nehra, Suresh Raina, Rashid Khan, Rohit Sharma and Nitish Rana.
Earlier, Kohli, who gave up the captaincy of Royal Challengers Bangalore ahead of this season, had recorded golden ducks in — 2008 against Mumbai Indians, 2014 against Punjab Kings, 2017 against Kolkata Knight Riders, 2022 against Lucknow Super Giants, and SunRisers Hyderabad.
Kohli even tried his luck to regain form opening for Bangalore after a barren run at No. 3. His first two golden ducks — against Lucknow Super Giants and Sunrisers Hyderabad — came at No. 3 while facing the pace bowlers.
After Kohli’s first first-ball duck in the tournament, former India head coach Ravi Shastri suggested the former national team skipper take a break from competitive cricket.
Virat Kohli in IPL 2022. (Source: iplt20.com)
“I am going straight to the main guy here. Virat Kohli is overcooked. If anyone needs a break, it’s him,” Shastri told tournament broadcasters. “Whether it’s two months or a month and a half, whether it’s after (the) England (tour in July) or before England, he needs a break because he has got six-seven years of cricket left in him and you don’t want to lose that with a fried brain.”
Since then, Kohli has added two more golden ducks.
Golden Duck Vs SRH Today 🙄 Seeing My Idol Like This Is Different Kind Of Pain.😔 But, I Have Trust In My King ❤️ Inshallah KinG_Kohli Comeback Stronger Very Soon✨ So Blasting Comeback Loading On The Card Very Soon_”😀 Best Of Luck @imVkohli pic.twitter.com/EQfPKo74UB
— Arbaz Hussain🇵🇰 (@ArbazHus77) May 8, 2022
Former England batter Kevin Pietersen said that Kohli needs to switch off his attention from social media to re-energize himself. “When the stadiums are full again, you guarantee him a spot in that side for the next 12, 24 or 36 months,” Pietersen said. “Tell him, ‘You’re our guy. We know you’ll deliver for us.’”
He acknowledged it would be hard for Kohli if he’s “completely fried.”
