Virat Kohli’s batting form dip is not because of pressure of being captain, says Kapil Dev

India captain Virat Kohli will score triple centuries if he finds his run scoring form, said 1983 World Cup winning former captain Kapil Dev. Kohli’s average in Tests had taken a hit since 2019 and he hasn’t scored a century in any format of the game for nearly two years.

This has led to speculation on how much the pressure of captaincy is affecting Kohli’s format with the bat but Kapil pointed out that the most prolific periods of Kohli’s career also came when he was captain of India in all formats. “For all these years, when he was scoring runs, no one said anything about captaincy affecting Virat’s batting and now suddenly, there are opinions when there’s been a little up and down in his graph. When he scored those double centuries and so many hundreds, wasn’t there pressure then? It means that his captaincy should not be the focus. Instead, look at his ability,” Kapil said on ‘Uncut’.

Kohli, 32, has scored seven double centuries in Test cricket, the most for any Indian player. All of his double tons have come while he was captain of India, which makes him the player with the most double centuries as captain of a team in the history of Test cricket. He, however, does not have a triple century to his name in Tests, with his highest score being an unbeaten 254 he made against South Africa in 2019.

“The graph has surely gone up and down but for how long? Age 28 to 32 is the time when you really blossom. He is now experienced and mature. If he returns to his old form, Virat will not only score a century or double ton; he will give you 300. He is so much mature now and there is no shortage of fitness when it comes to Kohli. He just needs to identify himself and look to score big,” Kapil said.