Take out Virat Kohli from an ODI team and that’s equivalent to weakening a side by 50% no matter how much stronger the other players are. Can’t imagine an Indian team without Virat Kohli? This is exactly how Kohli has positioned himself in the minds of his fans.
Kohli has crafted himself into an indispensable part of Indian cricket, especially in the limited overs formats. But what if the Delhi batsman wasn’t a part of this generation and belonged to the era of Sunil Gavaskar or a Vinoo Mankad and played before ODI cricket came into existence?
In that case, India wouldn’t have had the luxury of a Virat Kohli in 2017, but would have been positive for India’s growth as a team. We take a look at what would have happened had Kohli’s career ended before the commencement of ODI cricket.
#5 Sachin Tendulkar wouldn’t have had a competitor for his ODI tons
In the modern era of cricket, records tumble at the rate of knots and the bar seems to get raised by the day. While a double century in ODI’s was an incredibly difficult task a couple of decades ago, the same has turned pretty much a regular fixture now.
Sachin Tendulkar’s number of tons in ODIs was a mountain to climb and it still is, but Virat Kohli has made a mockery of the record. With 27 tons in his kitty, he is 22 away from the master and with age on his side, the possibility of overhauling the record can’t be ruled out.
Kohli recently equalled Sachin’s record of most centuries in run chases (17), and with the kind of form he has displayed over the years, he is set for many such achievements.
#4 India would never have gathered courage to chase in an ODI without a second thought
Chasing down gigantic totals demands playing out of one’s skin to taste success at regular intervals. The fortunes of the chasing team require one mishap to shatter down and the scoreboard pressure adds to the challenges.
Virat Kohli is one of the key reasons why India never shy away from hunting down totals and astonishingly enough, he tends to win games single-handedly. In the pre-Kohli era, apart from a win here or there, India faltered in run chases and preferred setting targets.
More than the runs, it’s the way that the target is achieved that mesmerises the audience when Kohli is batting. His average in successful run chases speaks for itself and needs no reiteration. He grafts when the chips are down and accelerates at the right time to fuel a run chase.
#3 Lasith Malinga’s downfall would have been postponed by a couple of years
In the limited overs format, Lasith Malinga was invincible and was difficult to play against. He was predictable, yet batsmen were unable to counter him. He was at the top of his career and also was going through a purple patch until Virat Kohli halted it.
India was looking down the barrel with a target of 320 runs in 40 overs in order to stand a chance of getting through to the finals of the ODI triangular series in Australia in 2012. Kohli took centre-stage and carted the Lankan bowlers to all corners.
Malinga was taken to the cleaners and 24 runs were plundered in one of his overs as the current Indian captain went deep into his crease and didn’t spare even the vicious yorkers. The over, probably, was a manifestation of the fact that playing out Malinga is within the capabilities of a human being.
#2 Australia and West Indies would have curbed their aggression
‘Break those old bones, Billy’ - The words hurled in by Alan Border to Craig McDermott for John Wright, the former Kiwi batsman and Indian coach, when he walked in one final time in his Test career. Bishen Singh Bedi withdrew his team from the field against West Indies after a barrage of bouncers by the Caribbean bowlers.
Australia and West Indies were the epitome of the aggressive brand of cricket and strained every sinew in curbing down the opposition. Virat Kohli has changed the face of Indian cricket with his belligerent approach in the field.
With Kohli at their face, the Kangaroos and the men from the Caribbean would never have been free spirits. The fact that Kohli backs his robust characteristics with runs off his willow adds to his glamour as a cricketer.
#1 India would have been a cricketing power-house long ago
It was only after their unexpected triumph over the West Indies in the 1983 World Cup final that Indian cricket got some sort of recognition as a heavyweight. Though the Indian team produced prominent names since their coronation to international cricket, the killer strike missed big time.
The urge to win, the itch to pull off something incredible didn’t happen and as a result, the wins took some time to flourish. A captain like Virat Kohli would certainly have inculcated more energy and zeal to take down their rivals.
An astute captain, Kohli doesn’t mind giving a few runs away in the quest to eke out wickets, but never permits opponents in getting under his skin which sets him apart from the rest of the world.
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