‘Virat Kohli is overcooked, needs a break,’ Ravi Shastri

Virat Kohli is intellectually “overcooked” and needs to enjoy some time off from cricket to serve the country for at minimum another six-seven years, feels ex-India coach Ravi Shastri.

Kohli has been going through a lean patch with only two 40 or more scores to show in last seven innings for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL season.

The 33-year-old, who hasn’t scored a century in the last 100 matches across formats, had stepped down from T20 captaincy both for India and RCB and furthermore quit Test captaincy.

Shastri feels any semblance of Kohli should be maneuvered carefully and compassion in the midst of the COVID-19 limitations which has bound players inside bio-bubbles.

“I am going straight to the main guy here. Virat Kohli is overcooked. If anyone needs a break, it’s him. Whether it’s 2 months or a month-and-a-half, whether it’s after England or before England. He needs a break because he has got 6-7 years of cricket left in him and you don’t want to lose that with a fried brain,” Shastri told Star Sports.

Kohli was out for a duck on Tuesday night as RCB rode on Faf du Plessis’ 96 to guarantee a 18-run prevail upon Lucknow Super Giants.

“When I was coach at the time when this first started, the first thing I said is ‘you have to show empathy to the guys’.

“If you’re going to be forceful, there is a very thin line there, from a guy losing the plot as opposed to him hanging in there and giving his best. So you have to be extremely careful.”

Shastri said there may be a couple of players in world cricket going through a similar issue which should be tended to forthright.

Repeating a similar feeling, previous England commander Kevin Pietersen said Kohli ought to remove time from the game as well as virtual entertainment to revive himself.

“…the guy has had so much to deal with, from marriage to baby to media scrutiny and all on his personal life. He is the biggest star on show,” he said.

“Virat Kohli needs to say ‘cricket boots, for six months, I will see you later’. Turn off social media, go and get re-energised.

“When the stadiums are full again, you guarantee him a spot in that side for the next 12, 24 or 36 months. Tell him ‘you’re our guy, we know you’ll deliver for us’.”

Pietersen said Kohli “is going to find it very hard to continue delivering now as his brain is completely fried”.