At the current T20 World Cup 2024, AB de Villiers has pushed Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid to assign Virat Kohli a different position.
The debate around Virat Kohli’s position on the Indian team has heated up in the wake of three straight poor bat scores in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024. Supported to bat first with captain Rohit Sharma, Kohli has only managed 5 runs in 3 games thus far, leading many to propose that he ought to bat at number three. Even Virat Kohli’s partner and former Royal Challengers Bengaluru teammate AB de Villiers offered his opinion on the matter, stating that he consistently believes that playing at number three is the ideal position for Virat. According to De Villiers, the nicest thing about Virat batting one-down is that, depending on the circumstances, he can play aggressively or steadily finish the innings. “Please bat Virat at number three, as I have always requested. Virat is always the first choice at number three, especially on the better pitches they will now be playing on. In addition to playing the attacking role, he has the ability to retreat and take the heat when needed. In the middle overs, he is the greatest player on the planet. In a video posted on his YouTube account, De Villiers stated, “I don’t see any reasons (for opening).”
After taking a more cautious approach in past World Cups and ICC competitions, De Villiers advised India to adopt a more offensive mindset as they try to end their trophy drought. Make sure you strike first, though. They seem to have been a little cautious in previous World Cups, kind of feeling their way into a game. They are such a good team that I think they can take a little chance early on to gain the upper hand because once they do, there’s no turning back,” De Villiers continued. In the Super 8s stage of the T20 World Cup 2024, India will play Afghanistan on Wednesday.
