Geoffrey Boycott not in favor of comparing Kohli and Tendulkar

Former England cricketer Geoffrey Boycott revealed that he is absolutely not in favor of comparing players across generations. Team India Test skipper Virat Kohli has been on a roll. He has been a juggernaut in all the three formats of the game. Such brilliant has his batting been that the critics and fans have started comparing him with legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar.

Tendulkar needs no introduction. He is arguably the most successful batsman to have played the game. With 100 international hundreds to his name, he is surely a legend. Geoffrey Boycott is a big fan of Virat Kohli too. He, however, wants the fans to have a reality check. He believes that the audiences get carried away by a player in good form. What matters is how long can a player continue to bat that way.

Speaking at a Rotary Club of Bombay Midtown, Geoffrey Boycott mentioned that Kohli is indeed a great player. But it is only unfair to compare him with the likes of Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar.

“We’re all human. What we see on TV, we think that it’s the best ever. Is Kohli better than (Sunil) Gavaskar? Hang on. The kid’s going to be a great player. But Gavaskar and (Sachin) Tendulkar were great players too. It’s easy to say ‘long live the king.’ ‘The king is dead.’ That’s what happens to us all. We’re all: ‘Was that Tendulkar, did he really play and get a 100 hundreds?’ ‘Was he really better than Kohli?’ We focus on what we see because we’re human,” he quoted.

Elaborating his point a little further, he said that Kohli can be only be judged at the end of his career. He added that even if he breaks all the records, that won’t make him the best but one among the best.

“He won’t break all records. And it won’t matter, even if he does. It won’t make him a better player than those of the past. I broke Gary Sobers’ record of most number of runs in Delhi. That doesn’t make me a better batsman than him. Records are there to be broken. What he has to do is carry on scoring runs and winning a Test match for his country. And then towards the end of his career, he’ll be judged in the pantheon of all the greats. I’m proud for instance that England have never lost a Test when I’ve made a hundred. Simple. Don’t get me out twice cheaply, you won’t win, simple,” quoted the former English cricketer.

Lastly, Geoffrey Boycott praised the hard work that Kohli has put in. He pointed out that the Delhi batsman surely deserves success. Nothing comes easily and it is always the hard work that pays off.

“Most players in any sport work very hard. It only looks easy, comfortable, but none of it is there when the guy is practicing, working his socks off. It’s one of the many things I like about Kohli. I hear from many ex-India players that he trained hard to get to where he is. If that’s true, which I’ve no reason to be believe it isn’t, he deserves his success. Because most people earn it by hard work. Nothing comes easily, naturally. You work at it, and if you do that, you’ll get better,” he concluded.