Former England captain Nasser Hussain feels Virat Kohli’s absence from the next two Tests will be a significant setback for India in the five-match series.
The comments came as reports surfaced that Virat Kohli might skip the third and fourth Tests in Rajkot and Ranchi, following his absence from the first two Tests for to personal issues.
Hussain supports Kohli in choosing his personal life, considering he’s been involved in constant cricket for over 15 years. In the meantime, Hussain encourages top-notch wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul to bounce back to the team. He expects him to perform well with the bat for the home team, especially in the void left by Kohli.
On Wednesday (February 7), Nasser Hussain told Sky Sports:
“But Kohli and his family and his private life has to come first, so it’s a blow for India, but as we’ve seen, they’ve got a lot of very good young batters.”
“But KL Rahul, who was injured for the last game, played brilliantly in the last few months for India and in all formats. I think he’ll come back in, so he’ll add to their batting.”
Nasser Hussain
Hussain continued:
“It will be a blow for India, blow for the series, blow for World Cricket. It’s gonna be a special series, already has been the first two games have been fascinating, and make no mistake, Virat Kohli is one of the greatest batters to ever play the game and any series, and any side would miss someone of that stature.”
Nasser Hussain
Nasser Hussain laments missing Kohli-Anderson duel in next two Tests
Nasser Hussain also mentioned that spectators will miss out on the thrilling match between Virat Kohli and England’s great bowler, James Anderson. The latter has seven Test dismissals against Kohli. Kohli, on the other hand, has 305 runs against the quick, averaging 43.6.
Hussain said:
“First things first, the game needs to look after the likes of Virat Kohli as well. He’s been playing international cricket for more than 15 years now, and if he needs a break to be away with family, just some time away from the game, absolutely we wish Virat Kohli all the best.”
Nasser Hussain
He added:
“It means we don’t have the mouth-watering possibility of an Anderson and Kohli contest like we’ve seen over the years. So, be it.”
Nasser Hussain
The 55-year-old went on to say that numerous Indian hitters, including skipper Rohit Sharma, Shreyas Iyer, and KS Bharat, were softly dismissed in the first two Tests against England. Hussain stated that Kohli never throws his wicket away. The cricketer-turned-commentator explained:
“There have been some soft dismissals in that Indian batting lineup, and it has left him vulnerable at times. One thing Kohli is with batting is ruthless. He doesn’t do soft dismissals. He’s driven by getting runs and winning games. So, they’ll miss that. Any side would miss the class of Virat Kohli.”
Nasser Hussain
Virat Kohli averages 42.36 against England, with 1991 runs in 28 Tests, including five hundreds and nine half-centuries.