Had I played against Kohli, he wouldn’t have scored so many runs: Shoaib Akhtar
Kohli and Akhtar played against each other only once, which was during the 2010 Asia Cup.
Former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar has claimed that if he had played against former Indian skipper Virat Kohli, the latter would not have managed to score as many runs in his career. It is to be noted that both Kohli and Akhtar played against each other only once, during the 2010 Asia Cup. However, Kohli did not get the chance to face the Rawalpindi Express in that match.
Previously, Kohli had expressed his desire to have faced Akhtar. Kohli emphasized the fact that he likes a challenge and would have enjoyed competing against the world’s fastest bowler. To note, Akhtar has criticized Kohli due to his lack of form in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) and also stated that big players should be dropped if they don’t perform for the team.
Virat Kohli is a good person and a big cricketer: Shoaib Akhtar
“Virat Kohli is a good person and a big cricketer and you only expect big words from big players. And I thank him a lot for that. But, if I would have played against Virat Kohli then he would not have scored these many runs but whatever he would have scored those would have been fabulous and it would look that he fought hard for those runs,” he said in an interview with an Indian media outlet.
Akhtar further said that he would have “gotten the best out of Kohli.” “He may not have had 50 centuries. 20 or 25 may at the most but those would have been valiant hundreds. I would have gotten the best out of Virat Kohli,” he added.
Talking about Kohli’s numbers in international cricket, the 33-year-old has played 458 matches including all three formats of the game and has amassed 23,650 runs. The right-handed batter has also stroked a total of 122 fifties and 70 hundreds in the international arena. In IPL, Kohli has played 214 matches and has scored 6402 runs at an average of 36.79.
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