'The wickets in India do not allow us to exploit Virat Kohli's weakness' - When James Anderson questioned Indian skipper's technical skills

The battle between James Anderson and Virat Kohli is one of the greatest battles of modern-day sport. Both these players are the premier players of their respective sides, and their battle has given fans plenty of reasons to rejoice about.

James Anderson has got the better of the Indian batting stalwart in the ongoing Test series thus far. Anderson has already dismissed the Indian skipper twice in this series, and Kohli has managed to score just a single fifty in the 5 innings that he has played in the series as well. Also, Kohli averages a poor 24.80 in the Test series as well.

And, in the year 2016, James Anderson had offered his thoughts on Virat Kohli’s technical deficiencies. The Indian batting icon had scored a magnificent 235 in the Mumbai Test match 5 years ago, and that was when Anderson questioned Kohli’s technique.

The right-arm pace bowling legend had stated that Kohli has not changed much since 2014, and the wickets in India do not provide a chance for the bowlers to exploit Kohli’s weakness. Adding that the pitches in England allow the bowlers to exploit Kohli’s technique, Anderson opined that the pitch in Mumbai did not have the pace to induce a nick from Kohli.

“I am not sure if he (Kohli) has changed. I just think any technical deficiencies he has got are not in play out here. The wickets just take that out of the equation. There is not that pace in the wicket to get the nicks, like we did against him in England – with a bit more movement,” said Anderson during the Mumbai Test between the two outfits.

Virat Kohli is suited to play in Indian conditions: James Anderson

James Anderson further reckoned that Virat Kohli is more suited to playing under conditions that do not offer pace and swing. Adding that Kohli is a good player of spin, the pace bowling colossus concluded by stating that if the bowlers are not bang on target, then Kohli will punish them.

“When that (pace and movement) is not there, he (Kohli) is very much suited to playing in these conditions. He is a very good player of spin – and if you are not bang on the money and don’t take your chances, he will punish you,” concluded Anderson.

However, it was Kohli who came out on top when England and India met in ‘pace friendly’ conditions in a five-match Test series in 2018. The Indian master batsman piled up 593 runs in the series at an average of close to 60.