Dear Virat, it's time to wear the crown again!

Dear Virat!

They say that when it rains, it pours! They also say that even your shadow leaves you in darkness. 

Who knows it better than you? 

After all, in these past two years, you must have had enough people who used to ride your wave train desert you for greener pastures.

Last week, you were accused of 'riling up' someone so much that he turned into a beast and smashed the bowlers to all corners of Edgbaston.

They said, "don't poke the bear". And it got me thinking. 

It got me thinking that you haven't just been poked but dragged and pinned to the floor over the last ten months.

You have suffered devastating setbacks in this period. 

As if the harsh defeat in the WTC final wasn't enough, heartbreaking reversals in South Africa and England- where we failed to win the series despite dominating significant parts of it- and the group-stage exit in T20 WC in what was your last assignment as captain must have scarred you a bit.

Not to forget the off-field drama that ensued back in September last year, which eventually culminated with you giving up Test captaincy post the heartbreak in South Africa and this constant scrutiny over your place these days. 

People are baying for your head with every innings you don't cross the 100-run mark. They are even questioning your place for the tournament that you used to own.

Despite this, you refuse to wake up. 

You have indeed scored the most 50-plus scores for India across all formats since your last hundred, but I think you'd be the first to admit that you have looked a pale shadow of your former glittering and dominating avatar. 

And, your recent struggles in the IPL, similar nature of dismissals and lack of luck haven't helped your cause either.

It's ironic, Virat, that you have played some of your best Test innings even in your current poor phase in Tests. 

Yet, amid the shambles, you have still managed to showcase a glimpse of the good old days with your supreme control in Adelaide, Cape Town, and excellent skills against spin and reverse-swing in Chennai.

But those weren't hundreds, and India lost each of those matches. And the bigger problem is you haven't backed them up with consistent scores as you used to. 

With the standards you've set for yourself, it's your fault that people are judging you by such a high yardstick. 

It's almost a throwback to the latter half of Sachin Tendulkar's career when the newspaper headlines used to be 'Tendulkar fails again', even if the Master Blaster had scored 99. Sachin managed to carve out a second peak after a two-year lean patch. You have followed his footsteps so far in your glorious career. It's time you do that again. 

On innumerable occasions and more recently in the case of Jonny Bairstow, we have seen that if you stay long enough, a dark night is eventually followed by a beautiful morning. 

There is a saying, "write off champions at your peril". And you have proved that many times in the past. So it's time you remind everyone about the same again.

Regards,

An Indian Cricket fan