Virat Kohli has made rapid strides in international cricket in all formats, scoring runs consistently. Former West Indies great Courtney Walsh believes that the India Test skipper is one of the top three batsmen in the world, and Kohli will be keen to show his skills with the bat, with the first of the four-match Test series starting on Thursday.
India have always had a brilliant batting line-up, and this current team in West Indies have some wonderful batsmen. Besides Kohli, they have Murali Vijay, Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane to name a few. However, it is the run-machine Kohli, who will be the prized wicket for the West Indies bowlers. Though Walsh is eager to see these India batsmen in West Indies, he does not want them to score too much.
"I do believe that Virat Kohli is one of the top three batsmen in the world. They also have other exciting batting talents, Murali Vijay, Ajinkya Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara and Rohit Sharma. All of them will be looking to make a mark in this series. I am excited to see them play here, but at the same time, I also don't want them to get too many runs against my team," Press Trust of India quoted Walsh as saying.
Interestingly, Kohli made his Test debut in the West Indies, but he only scored 19 runs in his first game. Kohli will also be looking to improve his record in the Caribbean, where the batsman has only scored 76 runs in three Test matches.
The India batsman has come a long way since then, scoring runs with great consistency, including 11 tons in his 41 matches so far in international cricket. Kohli had formed an excellent partnership with team director Ravi Shastri in the last 18 months, but the latter lost to Anil Kumble in the race for the position of the team's coach.
Now, Kohli needs to work closely with Kumble. This pair seems to be a good combination, with both known for their never-give-up attitude. Walsh believes that the BCCI have done a wonderful job, appointing Kumble as the permanent coach.
"I think it is a very good move. He is a very well respected person, and someone who is involved with the ICC as well. He (Kumble) has always wanted to contribute and give something back to cricket and his heart is in the right place. I am sure he will do everything in his power to ensure that Indian cricket stays at the top or even gets better," Walsh said.
"They will have immense respect for him because they will have seen him play all those years. Plus, Kumble has been involved with cricket quite a lot since he stopped playing and he knows the ins and outs of the current-day game."
