“He is not far off from a real special innings” - Michael Vaughan makes big prediction on struggling Indian batter

Former England captain Michael Vaughan reckons that out-of-form Indian batter Virat Kohli has shown glimpses of returning to form, asserting that a special knock might not be far away.

Kohli had a disastrous run in the T20I series against England, scoring only 12 runs across two matches. The series was an extension of his lean run that has led to some experts and former cricketers questioning his place in the Indian team.

The 33-year-old will next be seen in action during the three-match ODI series against England, which begins at the Kennington Oval in London on Tuesday (July 12). Previewing the contest, Vaughan admitted that a lot of focus during the one-dayers will be on Kohli. He told Cricbuzz:

“The pinnacle point in the series will be Virat. India need Virat back to form. They need him scoring runs. Only a few years ago, we were saying he’s the greatest chaser in white ball history. I’ve seen glimpses that he is not far off from a real special innings. Hope we see it in the next series. Really want Virat scoring consistent runs.”

Following the conclusion of the T20I series against England, Team India skipper Rohit Sharma backed Kohli. Taking a dig at the critics, he said:

"It is not difficult for us as we do not listen to the outside noise. I don't know who the experts are. I don't even understand why they are called experts. They are watching it from the outside, they don't know what is going on inside.”

A few days back, Indian legend Kapil Dev questioned Kohli’s place in the T20I team despite his consistent failures. Former cricketers Wasim Jaffer and Ajay Jadeja have also claimed that the former captain is no longer a certainty in the T20I playing XI.

---

“You need that balancing all-rounder” - Zaheer Khan backs Shardul Thakur for first ODI against England

Shifting focus to the bowling department for the one-dayers, former Indian pacer Zaheer Khan backed all-rounder Shardul Thakur to make the playing XI.

Asked to pick his bowling options for the first game, he replied:

“(Jasprit) Bumrah and (Mohammad) Shami for sure. They are definitely going to be your starters. Then you’ll have Shardul (Thakur), maybe, playing that role of an all-rounder. You need that balancing all-rounder.

"Between Prasidh Krishna and Mohammed Siraj, one will get the go ahead. You’ll have four seamers for sure, unless Hardik is going to be contributing with the ball. Then they’ll have different plans.”

Thakur featured in the rescheduled Test in Birmingham, but had a forgettable match. He claimed a solitary wicket and scored only five runs.

---