'He will now constantly face pressure' - Sanjay Manjrekar gives his verdict on Virat Kohli with India

Former Indian team captain Virat Kohli could not fare well in the ODIs against Bangladesh. His performance in the Test series was quite disappointing as well. This is the reason why Kohli reached the worst Test ranking of his career after 6 years. Kohli scored a century in a T20 match for the first time in the Asia Cup. At the same time, he also scored match-winning runs against Pakistan in the World Cup.

India has announced the team for T20 and ODI series against Sri Lanka. Former Indian captain Kohli has been included in the squad for the ODI series. But he could not make his place in the T20 team. In such a situation, former cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has given a big statement about Kohli. He said that Kohli will have to score runs consistently to be part of the team.

“Virat Kohli had a pretty good World Cup, I would have liked him to play as much international cricket as possible, just to be amongst the runs, hitting the ball virtually every week and be prepared for the match situation is a good thing. The thing is Virat Kohli will now constantly face pressure from others who are getting opportunities in his place." Manjrekar was quoted as saying by ESPN Cricinfo.

Virat Kohli is still very much in the plans: Sanjay Manjrekar

Manjrekar said that it is now going to be hard for Kohli as youngsters are now performing well whenever they are getting the opportunities, so there will be some pressure on him to keep performing. He also said that Kohli has been consistent over the years in the ODIs and Test mostly.

"We have seen what the young players have done like Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson when they've got the opportunity. So, yes, Virat Kohli is still very much in the plans after the World Cup he had and I'm sure he wants to keep being a member in the T20 side."

“Since this is 2023, the World Cup year, I guess India are looking to give him more one-day time and one-day cricket is a great format to get back into form. That is where Virat Kohli has shown he is an all-time great in the way he has played over the years, the consistency, and the match-winning ability.

“Test and one-day cricket has been his two greatest formats. So, somewhere, the selectors are looking at Kohli and saying, ‘Let’s get you to play more of 50-overs cricket." he said.