Kohli is back among runs but it is hurting RCB

With the pressure rising, he thought the best way to find form is to spend time in the middle and then try opening his shoulders

One of the major talking points of this Indian Premier League is Virat Kohli's abysmal form that has stretched on for far too long to not be concerned. The former talismanic skipper of the Royal Challengers Bangalore, so used to dominating the best of the bowlers and playing match-winning innings for fun, has looked a pale shadow of his not-so-distant great self.

Kohli strode into this IPL on the back of a poor international run - as compared to his own high standards - in two of the three formats over the last few years. He hadn’t scored a single international century since the 136 in the D/N Test against Bangladesh in Kolkata in November 2019. While he has excelled in T20Is with an average of 56.40 since that ton at the Eden Gardens, he’s struggled considerably in Tests (28.03) and ODIs (37.66).

Having relinquished captaincy, of both RCB and the Indian team prior to this IPL, and thereby relieving himself of the pressures that come with the job, one expected to see the return of King Kohli, a champion batter who would use his bat like a sword to slay bowlers through extra cover and deep midwicket. Instead, the once batsman-supreme finds himself neck-deep in a mire and seemingly lost for a way out.

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What’s worrying is that the problems of old have resurfaced and Kohli, the ever-evolving batter, is shockingly committing them again. The Lucknow Super Giants and the Sunrisers Hyderabad preyed on his tendency to flash around the off-stump by dismissing him for golden ducks. The wry smile on Kohli’s face after the second duck showed that even he couldn’t quite believe what he had done.

The two ducks were followed by a 9 against the Rajasthan Royals where he looked like getting out at any moment in the opening over he faced against Trent Boult.

With the pressure rising, he thought the best way to find form was to spend time in the middle and then try opening his shoulders. But that move hasn't worked either and the tactic is also hurting the team.

He laboured to a 53-ball 58 and 33-ball 30 while opening the innings against the Gujarat Titans and the Chennai Super Kings respectively. A single batter at the top consuming so many deliveries and scoring at such a poor strike rate ends up putting immense pressure on the batters who follow him.

"This is something we've been seeing with Virat, not just this season," said former West Indies pacer Ian Bishop on ESPNcricinfo's T20 Time Out. "Even last season, I remember, and even sometimes internationally, he'll fly out - he didn't fly out tonight - and then he'll slow down again. So, I'm concerned."

"If you're not getting ahead of the rate and going at a run-a-ball, you need to bat deep into the innings. And he isn't going deep into the innings either. So those deliveries don't come back to you. Even if RCB won, that wasn't an innings, even given the difficulties of the pitch, that you could say caused a match-winning total."

The innings against CSK also exposed another major chink in Kohli’s armour - his weakness against spinners. Seeing Kolhi struggle, CSK skipper MS Dhoni, his friend and former mentor, handed the ball to Moeen Ali. The English off-spinner produced a classic off-spin delivery, tossing it up and luring Kohli into a drive. Kohli missed it completely and the ball crashed through his defences and rattled the stumps.

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Even during his peak, Kohli found it hard to force the pace against spinners. He felt a lot more comfortable against the pacers where the ball came onto the bat. He would make up for his poor strike rate against spinners with the pacers. The problem now is that pacers have also figured the right lines and lengths for Kohli. They don’t stray onto his legs, keep it outside the off stump, forcing the Delhiite into making a mistake.

Kohli is totally aware of his troubles. With IPL 2022 heading into the business end, the sooner he finds a solution, the better for RCB. Kohli would also do well to inject what he would ask of others - his intent. The 33-year-old has often castigated some of his India mates for lacking that ingredient in their batting and it's time he adds some intent to his approach.