Essex batsman Varun Chopra talks about his interaction with Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli is one of the greatest cricketers India have ever produced. The Delhi-born batsman has been a terrorising factor for bowlers across all formats of the sport. The 29-year-old is currently in England where he and the Indian team will play a five-match Test series against the Brits. The first Test at Edgbaston in Birmingham begins on August 1 and Kohli has a tough task on his hands.

He didn’t have an overwhelming campaign in the erstwhile tour back in 2014 and would be hoping to put up an impressive show this time around. India is currently playing a three-day practice match against Essex at County Ground in Chelmsford. In the first innings, the right-handed batsman notched 68 runs from 93 balls before falling prey to left-arm seamer Paul Walter.

Meanwhile, Varun Chopra, Essex’s opening batsman who was dismissed by Ishant Sharma in the first innings of the ongoing match, hailed Virat for the approach he employs towards the sport. Back in 2006, during India U19’s tour of England, Chopra and Virat played against each other and the Essex-born cricketer put forth his experience of playing alongside the Indian captain.

I’m going to meet him tomorrow

Moreover, he pledged to meet Kohli to get his insights on batting and other cricketing attributes. “I played against Virat in the Under-19 series about 12 years ago. We were catching up and it’s good to see him after such a long time. I was picking his brains and obviously, he is one of the world’s best if not the best at the moment. It was great to talk to him and he is very helpful.

“I’m going to meet him tomorrow to talk a bit more specifically about batting. Today we were just talking cricket generally, how things are and more about the game to be honest. Obviously, he is very enthusiastic about the game. Two guys who just want to improve and get better,” Chopra was quoted as saying in a video released by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

The batsman also reckons that the upcoming five-match Test series will be a closely-fought one. “Time will tell. We’ve had good results overseas and this will be a good series. Technically, Indian batters look good, their batters certainly look good and their batters have good strength and depth in bowling. So I’m sure it’s going to be a good series between the two teams,” he added.

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