'He is fielding like a panther and his batting is brilliant' - R Sridhar heaps praise on Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli hasn't turned back since returning to the international game after a six-week hiatus. Kohli, who recently was resembling a pale imitation of his once-dominant self, has gone back to his former glory. Since his return, Kohli has amassed four fifty-plus scores in eight innings and, when he hit 122 not out against Afghanistan in the Asia Cup, he finally snapped his long century drought.

A significant milestone in Virat Kohli's ascent occurred on Sunday when his score of 63 helped India win the series against Australia. Suryakumar Yadav's score of 69 made a significant impact, but Kohli stayed virtually till the very end to make sure India did not falter. Former India fielding coach R Sridhar, who has seen Kohli at his peak, praised the new version of the ace batter and observed numerous improvements in Kohli's batting, fielding, and general mindset and state of mind.

“He is in a better space now. Like he admitted himself, he was probably not in the right frame of mind and now has got it in the right place. The break has done him wonders; the time spent with his family has done him wonders. And we saw what he could do right in the first game against Pakistan in the Asia Cup,” Sridhar told Cricket.com.

Kohli scored a composed 35-run knock in the first game against Pakistan, in the group stage, and then scored two consecutive half-centuries, one against Hong Kong (group stage) and another against Pakistan in the Super Four stage of the Asia Cup 2022. Though he could not make an impact in the game against Sri Lanka, he went on to bring up his maiden T20I ton in India’s last game of the tournament against Afghanistan.

You can well and truly say that the king is back: Sridhar

Kohli finished the Australia series with a gutsy fifty after posting poor scores in the first two T20Is. The team now gears up for their next stint, which is against South Africa as India is set to host the Proteas for three T20Is followed by as many ODIs. Sridhar feels that the teams now need to be aware of Kohli, who is back into the game, in the best way possible, for the good.

“After seeing him bat from ringside in Hyderabad, you can well and truly say that the king is back. Great mindset. He is fielding like a panther and his batting is brilliant. All in all, it augurs extremely well for Indian cricket going into the World Cup,” he added.