Kohli too good a player to have problems in CT: Hemang Badani

The Indian captain Virat Kohli has been in an indifferent form for quite some time. He couldn’t contribute a lot in the Test series against Australia and the poor run of form continued in the Indian Premier League as well. But the former Indian cricketer Hemang Badani reckoned that his form wasn’t a worry going into the Champions Trophy.

“He has changed a lot since the last time he went there [England] and the person I see today is a lot different. My only worry with Kohli is that is he a little fatigued right now. Is he playing too much? That’s the only concern. As for his technique, I am not concerned. He is too good a player to actually have a problem going into the Champions Trophy,” he told Sportstar.

Badani also stated that India had a good chance of defending the title in England but the only concern is the ageing players in the squad. “It is a good side, but there is a little bit of worry – a lot of these guys are ageing and a lot of them aren’t in their peak form,” he said.

“Yuvi (Yuvraj Singh), I don’t really know. If you go back to the last ODI series, he has got a hundred against England. So, you can’t really drop him and he is someone who has done well. But, does he still have it? Then Rahane is not batting at his best, Rohit Sharma is coming after a six-month layoff, didn’t have a great IPL, but again he is a good player. Dhoni doesn’t look the same, but his glovework is still the best, still impeccable. However, batting isn’t the same,” the left-hander added.

The former batsman reckoned that the hosts of the Champions Trophy, England, would have a great chance to win their first 50-over tournament. “Their ODI history hasn’t been the greatest but if you see the last two years that they have played after the World Cup, they have played some amazing cricket. They have got guys who go hard after the ball. Earlier, guys left the ball, they took it easy. Those things have changed. And with them playing at home, to me, they are the side to beat,” he said.

Stokes will be the player to watch out for

Talking about the costliest pick of IPL 2017 – Ben Stokes, Badani believed the left-hander would be the key player for England. “He is a major player for them. He is a match winner and one of the reasons why RPS (Rising Pune Supergiant) did well in IPL is because of him. To start with, he was a bit slow, but he was getting used to Indian soil and conditions and how the IPL works but then he picked up. In Champions Trophy, he will probably be one of the most important players in the tournament. He bats and bowls well, and is an amazing fielder,” he concluded.