When Virat Kohli switches on a mode inside him, he can play any game at any pace: Ravichandran Ashwin

Veteran Team India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has praised Virat Kohli for the intent he showed on his comeback to the T20I side in the recently concluded series against Afghanistan. Ashwin asserted that his aggressive approach with the bat and in the field was brilliant to watch.

Both Kohli and Rohit Sharma were handed T20I comebacks for the series against Afghanistan. While the former missed the first match due to personal reasons, he contributed a quick-fire 29 off 16 in the second game in Indore. While he was dismissed without scoring in Bengaluru, he was superb in the field and saved what seemed like a certain six with an acrobatic leap near the boundary.

Speaking on his YouTube show, Ashwin opined that Kohli has proved his preparedness for the 2024 T20 World Cup in the series against Afghanistan.

“The ever-consistent Virat Kohli scored heaps of runs in the ODI World Cup. He flew like a Superman to save a six, and that is the reason why this match (3rd T20I) went into the Super Over. But his intent in the second T20I to hit every bowler out of the park just shows that he is also game for the upcoming World Cup. He also wants to take an aggressive approach. It was brilliant to watch him pay in such gear,” the 37-year-old said.

“This is Virat Kohli we are talking about, one of the greatest Indian batters to ever grace the game. When he switches on a mode inside him, he can play any game at any pace. And he showed it yet again,” Ashwin added in praise of the former India captain.

Kohli was looking in great touch in the second T20I before he miscued an attempted big hit off Naveen-ul-Haq’s bowling.

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Rohit backs Kohli despite the latter’s duck in the 3rd T20I

Kohli was dismissed without scoring in the third T20I in Bengaluru. He tried to pull a delivery from Fareed Ahmad but failed to time the ball properly and gave a simple catch. Despite his early dismissal, skipper Rohit backed the senior batter’s choice of stroke.

“Kohli tried to go hard from the word go, he normally does not do that, but he showed the intent. Same with [Sanju] Samson, he was out first ball, but the intent was there," the Indian captain said in a post-match interaction with Jio Cinema.

India were in trouble at 22/4 in the third T20I, but Rohit (121*) and Rinku Singh (69*) lifted the hosts to 212/4. Afghanistan fought hard to tie the game, but the Men in Blue won the second Super Over to clinch the contest.