West Indies great Chris Gayle believes that Virat Kohli still has enough steam left in his tank to represent India in all formats. Kohli will be returning to competitive cricket after a two-month hiatus in IPL 2024, which begins on Friday, March 22. He will be in action in the curtain raiser for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), who will lock horns against defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Chennai.
All eyes will be on Virat Kohli in the upcoming edition of the T20 extravaganza. The Delhi-born batter was initially supposed to feature in a five-match Test series against England which began in January and concluded earlier this month. However, he withdrew his name due to family commitments.
With the 2024 Twenty20 World Cup on the horizon, Kohli’s performances will be a big talking point. He finished fourth in the Orange Cap race with 639 runs in 14 innings last year.
Follow all the action from IPL 2024, including the IPL 2024 Schedule and IPL 2024 Points Table. Also, check Players vying for IPL 2024 Orange Cap and IPL 2024 Purple Cap
While there is certainly no doubt about his calibre in T20s, there has been widespread speculation over his future in the shortest format as far as international cricket is concerned.
Chris Gayle, Kohli’s former teammate at RCB, is sure that Kohli has a lot to offer to India in all three formats.
Speaking to Cricbuzz, Chris Gayle dispelled all doubts surrounding Virat Kohli as the T20 batter and backed him to be a top player for years to come. “Very unique, the one and only Virat Kohli is still going and still going very strong. Still has a lot of years left in him to play all formats. We’ll see what calls he makes for himself and Indian cricket as well,” the Jamaica-born former cricketer stated.
READ MORE: IPL 2024: A Season of Returns, Swansong, Test of Loyalty, and New Beginnings
Virat Kohli’s future in T20Is for India has been a topic of constant debate since the side’s humiliating semi-final exit at the hands of England at the 2022 Twenty20 World Cup in Australia.
After not being selected to play in T20Is for 14 months, Virat Kohli, along with skipper Rohit Sharma, returned for the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan in January. Kohli played two of those three fixtures but failed to create a difference, only egging on the naysayers further.
READ MORE: IPL 2024: Landmark Edition of T20 Extravaganza to Kickstart With Kaveri Derby as CSK Welcome RCB in Curtain-raiser
With IPL 2024 the only form of cricket that Virat Kohli will play before the Twenty20 World Cup in June, the 35-year-old will be determined to have a groundbreaking season with RCB. Helping the franchise win their first-ever IPL trophy would be the icing on the cake for the batting maverick.
Comments
0 comment