Monty Panesar's brazen take on Virat Kohli's Test retirement; highlights vulnerability: 'Hasn't worked out solutions'

Hindustan Times

7 hours ago

Monty Panesar has made a bold claim about Virat Kohli's retirement from Test cricket ahead of the big England tour. The former spinner pointed out Kohli's vulnerability outside off-stump and suggested that it could be the reason behind his big decision not to face England during a low phase in his Test career. The Indian batting maestro struggled in the last Test series he played before retirement on the Australian tour, where he scored a century in the first match but then struggled in the remaining matches. He failed to find a solution for his recurring struggles with the ball outside the off-stump, and the Aussie pacers took advantage of it.
Kohli endured a forgettable England tour in 2014, where his vulnerability outside the off-stump was exposed in front of the world for the first time. However, he made changes to his stance and staged a stellar turnaround in the 2018 tour to counter James Anderson and Co.
In the past couple of years, his struggles outside the off-stump have resurfaced, leading to a dip in form and bringing his Test average down to below 50.
Panesar, who played 50 Tests and helped England to a rare Test series win in India back in 2012, reckons Kohli would have found it tougher to deal with the moving ball around the off-stump than on his previous tours of England.
"With Kohli, what has happened is that against the ball outside the off stump, the fifth stump line, especially in Australia on fast bouncy pitches he was struggling," the left-arm spinner told PTI.
"So he probably thought maybe the fact that in England it is going to swing a lot more, he'll probably hasn't worked out solutions in that corridor of uncertainty
"And I think that's probably been one of the reasons why he thought to retire and put all his energy with RCB and ODI cricket for India."
However, the former English spinner Kohli was praised for his outstanding Test career, adding that his decision to step away was likely driven by a desire to create opportunities for the next generation.
"I think he's done very well as a cricketer in all formats. He has been a brilliant ambassador for Test cricket. He probably feels that he's done his best, he's achieved everything and probably feels like it's time for the youngsters to step up," he added.
Panesar pointed out that Kohli managed to bounce back successfully in 2018, but attempting a similar comeback at this stage of his career would be significantly more difficult.
"It would be a lot tougher for Kohli to repeat the same performances of2018. Just simple fact that he's been struggling over the last 12 to 18 months with that ball outside off stump. He hasn't got a solution for that, you know problem that he has on fourth and fifth stump.
"So he's thinking it's better for Indian cricket to give youngsters a go and hopefully find the next superstar," said Panesar, who is commentating on the Saurashtra Pro T20 League.