'India wouldn't have lost first Test if Virat Kohli...': Michael Vaughan
- By Web Desk -
- Feb 01, 2024
Former cricketer Michael Vaughan claimed India would not have lost the first Test against England in Hyderabad under star batter Virat Kohli’s captaincy.
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In a column for UK news agency The Telegraph, former England captain Michael Vaughan stated the match’s outcome would have been different if Virat Kohli led the side. He added that Rohit Sharma was clueless at that point.
“They missed Virat Kohli’s captaincy massively in Test cricket,” he stated. “Under Virat’s captaincy that week, India wouldn’t have lost the game. Rohit [Sharma] is a legend and a great player. But I felt he just switched off completely.”
He rated Rohit Sharma’s leadership as “average” in the game.
“I thought Rohit Sharma’s captaincy was very, very average. I thought he was so reactive, I don’t think he manoeuvred his field or was proactive with his bowling changes. And he didn’t have any answer to Ollie Pope’s sweeps or reverse sweeps,” he concluded.
It is pertinent to mention that Virat Kohli had opted out of the five-match series’ first and second games.
England trumped the hosts to lead the five-match series 1-0.
Ollie Pope’s 196 turned the opening Test on its head, as the batsman frequently played the unorthodox reverse sweep to blunt the threat of the Indian spinners.
Rohit Sharma’s side suffered only their fourth home defeat in 47 Tests since 2013 in Hyderabad last week as England came from 190 runs behind after the first innings to snatch a stunning 28-run victory.
Debutant spinner Tom Hartley returned figures of 7-62 to bundle India out for 202 while chasing 231 in Hyderabad.
Related – Dean Elgar’s shocking comments about Virat Kohli go viral