Virat Kohli has been scoring runs consistently all over the world, and winning matches for India in difficult situations in all formats. His batting brilliance has drawn comparison with India legend Sachin Tendulkar, who is said to be one of the greatest players to have ever picked up the willow. However, former Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf rates Tendulkar higher than Kohli.
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Though opinions may be divided over who is better, Yousuf has some logic behind his reasoning. He feels that the quality of bowlers is not the same as compared to the '90s, when the likes of Curtly Ambrose, Allan Donald, Wasim Akram, Glen McGrath, Shane Warne, and Mutthiah Muralitharan were in a league of their own.
One cannot help but agree with Yousuf, since the present bunch of bowlers in world cricket does not belong to that bracket of former world-class bowlers, who instilled fear in the minds of the batsmen. Besides Dale Steyn, MItchell Starc and Mohammad Amir, one cannot think of any sensational bowler in cricket at present.
However, one should not take anything away from Kohli's incredible run in world cricket.
The India captain averages above 50 in all formats of the game, which is exceptional. Irrespective of the bowlers and conditions, Kohli makes batting look easy to the eye, which is a hallmark of any top batsman.
"I don't want to take anything away from Kohli. He is an exceptional talent. But I rate Tendulkar much higher because of the era he played in, against the best teams, fast bowlers and spinners," Yousuf was quoted by Press Trust of India as saying.
"Nowadays, the quality of players is not the same as it was say in the 90s and until 2011. After 2011 World Cup the quality has come down. Tendulkar was a world class player and this can be judged by the number of runs and hundreds he scored against strong opposition in all conditions and in all formats," he says. "I played a lot against Tendulkar and he was a masterclass and produced match winning knocks many a times. I don't think Kohli is facing the same quality bowlers or opposition."
