With the T20 World Cup having begun on Sunday, all eyes will once again be on Team India, who will be aiming to end their trophy drought, having last won an ICC title in 2013. Since then, India has only had heartbreaks. In the ODI World Cup at home last year, India lost to Australia, further continuing the drought.
The spotlight will once again be on Virat Kohli, who is expected to be India’s main batter. The former captain finished as the Orange Cap winner in IPL 2024, helping RCB to the playoffs.
He will be expected to carry India on his shoulders and take them to the title. He will also be every fan’s favourite player. Many will also remember his poor patch when stadiums were empty during Covid-19.
Speaking to Cricbuzz, Kohli’s former teammate Dinesh Karthik also pointed it out as one of the reasons for the RCB star’s poor patch. “Very disarming for a start when you don’t play with crowds. It took us sometime when we played in IPL without any crowds, it was very weird. When you know you hit a shot, you feel like you are playing in a domestic game. It very much feels like that, there is nobody around to clap, no sounds. At times, you only hear some claps from the dressing room. It is very weird and it is very hard for people who have played international cricket consistently. I really feel one of Virat Kohli’s reasons for him not to have done as well as he generally does during that covid phase is the fact there was no crowd around,” he said.
“He is someone who completely gets enamored and you know likes getting pushed by crowds and then the likes of Hardik Pandya, you can keep naming big names from India and other parts of the country as well. For Virat Kohli, I can say that would have definitely played a massive part, just playing to nobody it would feel weird. It is one thing playing to a TV audience, which is great but you don’t hear them clapping for you. It is a very different feeling to play in front of no one,” he further added.
Kohli registered 741 runs in IPL 2024, in 15 matches. His form saw RCB stage a stunning comeback and reach the playoffs. He will be hoping to replicate that form when India face Ireland in their T20 World Cup opener on Wednesday.