‘Kohli not bothered about records in T20’

Ex-Indian spinner reacts to news of Babar overtaking Kohli as top T20 run-getter

Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh, while reacting to the news of Pakistan Captain Babar Azam overtaking Virat Kohli as the top T20 run-getter, said Kohli isn’t concerned with statistics or reclaiming the top spot in the T20I batting charts.

Harbhajan said Kohli will focus on getting runs in the T20 World Cup 2024 group stage, without worrying about being the leading run-scorer.

Babar surpassed Kohli’s record for most runs in men’s T20Is during the group stage, leading with 4113 runs, while Kohli trails by 71 runs. Kohli has struggled, scoring only five runs in three T20 World Cup 2024 matches, including a four against Pakistan on June 9, his lowest in a T20 World Cup match against them.

“I am not sure if he (Kohli) is checking all these records that Babar has gone ahead of him. But, one thing is sure. He must be itching to get big runs under his belt before he gets to the next round which will be played in the Caribbean,” Harbhajan Singh told Star Sports on Wednesday.

“There the matches will be played on better pitches. Virat Kohli, obviously, must be thinking how to get runs under his belt. Knowing the champion that he is, he will be doing all the hard work to get those runs for India. He will just focus on the first 10 balls. If he bats for 10 balls, then we know what Virat Kohli can do,” he added.

Former fast bowler Laxmipathy Balaji added that Kohli is as hungry as ever and has nothing to prove.

He believes Kohli’s main challenge is internal and that he remains a modern-day great despite a slow start on difficult pitches.

“I don’t think he needs to prove anything to anybody. He must be thinking about the battle that he probably is having with himself. Virat is a modern-day great. He will be wanting to make a mark on this platform. Yes, Virat hasn’t gotten off to a great start, but run-scoring has been difficult on this pitch,” Balaji said.