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Manjrekar Demeans Kohli While Praising Bumrah; Lands In Yet Another Controversy

Kohli is yet to fire in the ongoing T20 World Cup (AP Photo)Kohli is yet to fire in the ongoing T20 World Cup (AP Photo)

Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar has been one of Virat Kohli's most vocal critics since the batter debuted for India in 2008. Recently, Manjrekar took a subtle dig at Kohli while praising Jasprit Bumrah as the 'best player'.

After India's thrilling six-run victory over Pakistan in New York, thanks to Bumrah's exceptional spell, Manjrekar posted a tweet highlighting Bumrah's brilliance. Bumrah's fast bowling performance, taking three wickets for just 14 runs, played a crucial role in India's win as Pakistan struggled to chase the moderate target. 

In contrast, Kohli had another disappointing outing, scoring just 4 runs.

This prompted Manjrekar to label Bumrah as the best player on the current Indian team, a comment that seemed to be a pointed jab at Kohli, who has had a lackluster World Cup campaign so far. 

Additionally, Manjrekar criticized the media for its obsession with Kohli, further fueling the controversy.

History between Kohli and Manjrekar

Kohli made his Test debut in 2011 against the West Indies and initially struggled with a series of low scores. 

His poor performances on the 2011 tours of Australia and England led Manjrekar to suggest he should be dropped from the team after being given one more chance. This was in 2012 when Kohli was still finding his footing in international cricket. 

Despite Kohli proving Manjrekar wrong on numerous occasions since then, the former cricketer turned commentator continues to be critical of him.

Earlier this year, just days before the announcement of India's squad for the ongoing T20 World Cup in the USA and the Caribbean, Manjrekar notably excluded Kohli—who was the highest run-scorer in the IPL 2024—from his probable World Cup squad.