Another day and another time Virat Kohli got dismissed when the ball was pitched outside the off stumps. It’s happened so often that now, Kohli’s dismissals give a deja vu experience. Barring Pat Cummins, the other three Australian quicks have gotten the scalp of the former Indian captain. Josh Hazlewood got him in Perth and Brisbane, Mitchell Starc in Adelaide and Melbourne, while Scott Boland has gotten Kohli’s scalp once in all the three matches he’s played.
Australia’s plan for Virat Kohli
Boland also got him in the India vs Australia 5th Test and revealed how they have worked Kohli out, who’s averaged 26.28 so far. “We’ve got pretty set plans on how we want to bowl to him,” Boland told Fox Cricket after the end of the first day’s play in Sydney.
The quick who came into the side due to Hazlewood’s injury revealed that Kohli has been leaving the ball pitched outside off when he’s just entered the middle. But after getting his eye in, Kohli wants to go for his shots. That’s when Australian pacers change their line to the fifth stump, which everyone, including Kohli, knows is his weakness.
Sooner rather than later, he nicks either to the wicketkeeper Alex Carey or the slips. Boland says they are enjoying success with the tactic, and there is not much Kohli can change now with just one innings left before the India vs Australia Test series ends.
He sort of feels like he leaves a lot, and then he wants to play the ball once he gets in. So once he gets in, we just want to switch our lines a little bit to the fifth stump, and it’s working at the moment,” Boland added.
Virat Kohli’s BGT 2024-25 stats
| Innings | Runs | Average | 50s | 100s | Highest Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 184 | 26.28 | 0 | 1 | 100* |
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