Only man who can relate to Virat Kohli now is Sachin Tendulkar: Ajay Jadeja

Former Indian batter Ajay Jadeja said that the only person who can relate to what Virat Kohli is going through right now is Sachin Tendulkar. Kohli is currently going through one of his leanest patches with the bat, averaging the lowest for a calendar year. Jadeja added that Kohli must have a meal and drink with Tendulkar.

Jadeja reckons that Tendulkar, who started out early as a cricketer and had bad phases with the bat along the way, would be the right person to talk to Kohli at the moment. Jadeja believes that the reason for Kohli’s lean patch is all in the former India captain’s mind.

“I said this 8 months ago when we were talking about this. I said the only man who can relate to what Virat Kohli is going through is Tendulkar,” Jadeja said on Sony SIX. “The only man who he should give a call and say, ‘let’s have a drink together. Have a nice meal’. Because who else, since starting at age 14 or 15, never had a bad patch? Only moved forward, and reached the heights Tendulkar had reached?”

It’s actually Sachin who should give Virat Kohli a call: Jadeja

“So, I can’t think of anyone else, because I believe that everything is in the mind. So, he is a call away from Tendulkar. I hope even if Virat doesn’t call… it’s actually Sachin who should give him a call. Sometimes, young people are in that phase. When you are older, since you have been through that, it’s your duty to make that call. I hope Master does that,” added Jadeja.

Kohli, in 2022, in 18 innings across formats, has scored 459 runs at an average of 25.50 and a top score of 79. The last time he scored a century for India was in November 2019, making it his longest century drought. In the current England tour, he scored 11 and 20 in the rescheduled fifth Test match, 1 and 11 in the T20Is, and 16 in the second ODI at Lord’s. He will be next in action on July 17, Sunday, for the third ODI against England in Old Trafford, Manchester.