Virat Kohli Or Rohit Sharma: Who Will Be More Successful In Bangladesh Test Series?
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in Test kits for India (X.com)
India are all set to start their home summer with a two-match Test series against Bangladesh starting on September 19 at the M.A Chidambaram in Chennai. India's squad has been announced for the same and many big players like Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli are back.
Rohit Sharma will lead the team and as always focus will be on him and Virat Kohli to deliver the goods on the pitches that are expected to assist spin and create problems for the batters. So, let's compare Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma on different parameters and try to find out who will be more successful in two Test matches coming up against the Bangla Tigers.
Rohit's Proactive Approach And Recent Home Record
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma both have a stupendous record in home Test matches and there is hardly any difference in the average of the two players in red-ball cricket at home. Rohit averages 61.58 in 29 Test matches while Virat also has brilliant average of 60.05 in 50 Tests.
However, since 2021, Virat Kohli has been blowing hot and cold in Test cricket. His average from 2021 in home Tests is just 34.47 and his strike-rate has also been under 50 which clearly shows that he has struggled to get going on turning decks in India. Rohit Sharma, on the other hand, has done quite well in difficult conditions and has an average of 44.87 with a strike rate of 61 which makes Rohit a dangerous entity for the opponent.
Also, Rohit has hit 128 fours and 18 sixes in this period in home Tests compared to just 56 fours and a solitary six from Virat Kohli. This boundary-hitting ability of Rohit has played a crucial part in his success as on rank-turners in India, it gets difficult to defend for a longer time given the unpredictable nature of pitches.
.jpg)
Virat Kohli's Struggle Against Spin
For the majority part of the last decade, Virat Kohli was almost untouchable in Indian cricket due to his unbelievable consistency. However, in recent times, he has been guilty of not converting his starts, and opponents have found out his vulnerability against spin.
Since 2021, Virat Kohli has got out 20 times in 30 innings against off-spinners and left-arm spinners - the same breed of bowlers India would be facing against Bangladesh. Rohit Sharma also has fallen 20 times against these spinners in 32 innings but has a better average of 38.4 compared to 32.6 of Virat Kohli.
Also, Rohit's strike-rate and boundary percentage is again better than Kohli's which as mentioned earlier can play a critical part on the turning tracks expected to be dished out in the series.
Rohit's Chennai Masterclass
The first Test match of the series will be played at the M.A Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai and the last time Rohit played a Test match there, he crafted a brilliant knock of 161 runs.
It was a rank-turner and all there was hardly any batter who looked comfortable in the middle. However, Rohit was in a different league, and if the pitch turns out to be the same again, his ability to take the deck out of the equation with his sheer talent surely puts him ahead of the rest of the lot.
Rohit In Belligerent Form, Kohli Struggling To Find Rhythm
Virat Kohli, on the other hand, apart from a century in Ahmedabad against Australia on a slow track, has not been able to produce big impact performances in Test cricket in recent times. However, Rohit has been doing it on a regular basis and in the last series against England at home he hit two centuries with the same positive attitude that has become the hallmark of his game in recent times.
Conclusion
Also, India recently struggled big time in Sri Lanka against spin in ODI format and it was only Rohit Sharma who tackled the bowlers with ease. So, Rohit surely has form on his side, and though we can expect Virat Kohli to deliver as well, Rohit Sharma at this point in time, looks more confident and apt to score big runs against Bangladesh.
.jpg)
 "Aashay Chopade")
