Very less players possess this ability to be both an anchor and an aggressor: Gautam Gambhir heaps praise on Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli has been savouring a terrific run of form in the ongoing T20 World Cup and he has been one of India’s primary pennant-bearer of excellence in the tournament. His arsenal may not be a bloated one, but the kind of balance and swiftness that he carries to the sport is extraordinary and brings out strokes that others find very difficult to execute.

He started the latest edition of the tournament with a banger, scoring 82 runs against Pakistan and followed it up with another impressive 62 against the Netherlands. Despite a reticent knock against South Africa, he was back to his phenomenal self against Bangladesh and is currently the highest run-scorer in the latest edition of the tournament.

Gautam Gambhir, former Indian opener, was highly impressed by Kohli’s current run and heaped praise on the former Indian skipper’s performances in the biennial extravaganza. He explained Kohli’s knock against Pakistan, breaking down in the simplest of terms why that innings was special.

Talking on Star Sports after the game against Bangladesh, he said, “In this batting lineup, Kohli has the role of an aggressor in the final ten overs, alongside being an anchor in the starting. When you see Babar Azam, it is not necessary that you can call them (other players) an anchor. Virat Kohli is much more than just an anchor. When the conditions are tough in the first 10 overs of the match and India loses wickets like today, Kohli built a partnership by playing second fiddle to KL Rahul. When Rahul was dismissed, he partnered with Suryakumar Yadav and became the main hero after Suryakumar’s dismissal.”

He further added, “This is something you can only do when you have the ability. Very less players possess this ability to be both an anchor and an aggressor. Kane Williamson, Steve Smith, and Babar Azam don’t have this but Virat Kohli has.”

Virat Kohli would continue to be a major driving force in India’s T20 World Cup campaign as they try and snuff out a long ICC trophy drought, with Zimbabwe in immediate sights and bigger goals following suit.