AB de Villiers Defends Virat Kohli Against Criticism from Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar has been criticising Virat Kohli for his strike rate in IPL 2024.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) batting mainstay Virat Kohli faced heavy criticism during the initial stages of IPL 2024. The team’s struggles, coupled with Kohli’s perceived lack of aggression, saw him under intense scrutiny, with legends like Sunil Gavaskar slamming him for his strike rate.
Now, former teammate and South African legend AB de Villiers has come out in strong support of Kohli.
AB de Villiers, speaking on Jio Cinema, stated that the criticism Virat Kohli receives is very unnecessary. However, everytime he has been criticised, he bounces back even stronger.
“It wasn’t great to see Virat facing so much criticism,” de Villiers said, according to Hindustan Times. “But knowing him the way I do, I knew exactly how he’d react. During my years playing against him, I’d tell my teammates – don’t say a word to Virat on the pitch. Criticism only fuels him, and he’ll come out and smash a big hundred if you try to get under his skin.”
De Villiers went a step further, suggesting the criticism might have even been beneficial for Kohli.
“Maybe it was a blessing in disguise,” he added. “Stuff like that motivates him a lot.”
This isn’t the first time de Villiers has spoken highly of Kohli’s temperament. Their on-field partnership for RCB was legendary, and their mutual respect transcends national boundaries.
Kohli eventually found his form later in the IPL, leading RCB to a surprising playoff run. Also, the Indian batting legend finished the season as the highest run-getter with 741 runs from 15 matches at a strike rate of 154.
