'If Virat Kohli Gets Fifty In First Game, Mouths Will Be Shut': Ravi Shastri Ahead Of Ind vs Pak Asia Cup Clash

Virat Kohli hasn't played a single match for the national team ever since England tour. Ind vs Pak Asia Cup 2022 match will be Kohli's 100th T20 International match on that day.  

Virat Kohli hasn't played a single match for the national team ever since the England tour.

Source : AFP

India vs Pakistan Asia Cup 2022: Sunday is going to be highly exciting for cricket fans all over the world as India and Pakistan will kick off their Asia Cup 2022 campaign by playing a T20 match against each other on August 28 at the Dubai International Stadium. Former head coach of the Indian cricket team Ravi Shastri, who was the first one to mention that Kohli needed to take a break from his hectic international schedule, said that Kohli which everyone will see now will be much calmer and with zero baggage. 

Virat Kohli hasn't played a single match for the national team ever since the England tour in July. Ind vs Pak Asia Cup 2022 match will be a historic day for Kohli fans as the ex-India skipper will play his 100th T20 International match on that day.  

"I haven't spoken to him but it's not rocket science. Big players wake up in due course. They need a break; mental fatigue can creep in to the best in the world. There is a not a single player in world cricket who has not gone through a bad patch and I am sure this downtime is not just for the body, it's time to reflect. He would have reflected as to what things he could have done better," Shastri said in a press conference organised by Asia Cup 2022  official broadcaster Star Sports. 

"What he didn't do right? What things he did absolutely right and should keep focussing on that. What he allowed to come into his mindset that was just not required or relevant? All these things come into play. You get an opportunity to then decide, what is the future course of action. Whether it is shot selection, or it is how you plan, when to shift gears, should I give himself more time. And now it is time for him to execute those plans."

Shastri said he was confident that a fresh start awaits for Kohli and the fans alike.

"He will come back with a calmer mind, because the heat is off. You have been away. Now, what you do will get the tone. He gets a fifty in the very first game, mouths will be shut for the rest of the tournament. What's happened in the past is history. Remember, public memory is very short. So it works both ways. His opportunity here is to get that calmness and then take it one day at a time," Shastri pointed out.