Kolkata: One, who has scored 80 international centuries (29 in Tests, 50 in ODIs and one in T20Is), cannot be brushed under the carpet unceremoniously. The man in question is none other than the most heralded cricketer of this generation Virat Kohli. According to sources, a section of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) wants to axe Kohli for the upcoming T20 World Cup. But then, there are a lot of hurdles to take such a call. The concurrence of the men, who matter is difficult to get. It is learnt that India captain Rohit Sharma has refused to accept Kohli's exclusion from the side and so have the five wise men.
"Neither skipper Rohit Sharma nor the selectors want to take a call on Virat Kohli for the World Cup so early. Come what may, both want him on the side. They are not even prepared to pick the squad before the halfway mark of the India Premier League," a source in the BCCI told ETV Bharat. Going by what has transpired so far, a section of the board officials feels that Kohli is not able to deliver in the shortest format of the game and that he should concentrate more on the longer versions of the game.
But, the thinktank seems to have put its foot down on the issue. "It's, too, early to say who will make the squad for the T20 World Cup. It will depend a lot on the IPL performance as it is being considered the warm-up for the multi-nation tournament," another source pointed out. If performance is anything to go by, Kohli walks into the India squad in any format of the game. Averaging close to 52 in 117 T20I fixtures, Kohli has amassed 4,037 runs with a strike rate of a tad over 138. As far as his recent exploits in the T20 format are concerned, Kohli has averaged over 62 in the last 10 matches with four 50-plus scores to his credit.
This doesn't disqualify him from being part of the Indian touring party for the tournament in the US and the West Indies to be held from June 2-29. Now, the question is whether the section of the board officials will go to the extent of pressurising the selectors to bring in a fresh guard in place of the former India captain. And that, too, for a tournament like the World Cup.
However, it seems King Kohli will now have to go the extra yard in the IPL to silence his critics once and for all. As the IPL starts rolling, the next month will be crucial for both Kohli and Men in Blue think tank to get the better of the propaganda that is currently flowing thick and fast.
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