Virat Kohli did not play in the era of Sachin Tendulkar, stop comparing them: Shoaib Akhtar

Virat Kohli’s phenomenal achievements over the last decade have been enough for him to be kept in the same bracket as one of the biggest legends of the game. Speaking of the legends, a batter who was compared during his playing days and continues to be in the comparisons despite having left the game many moons back is Sachin Tendulkar.

Tendulkar’s legacy continues, however, and the sheer weight of his number is such that despite having hung his boots in 2013, no one in the current circuit is even close to reaching his tally of 18,463 ODI and 15,921 Test runs. Even though both Kohli and Tendulkar represented the same nation, the quest for best amongst the followers of the game continues, as many don’t mind comparing their numbers despite the two being players from two different eras.

Opening up on the same, Pakistan’s former pacer Shoaib Akhtar has reckoned that Kohli must not be compared with Tendulkar for the latter played against the likes of Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne.

Kohli did not play in Tendulkar’s era: Shoaib Akhtar 

“There’s an embargo on cricket. How can there be three circles in the field? I mean…give Sachin Tendulkar credit and stop comparing him to Virat Kohli. He did not play the era of Sachin Tendulkar, which is like the single era of 50 overs, and then the reverse swing starts literally after 10 overs. Face that with Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, and the spin of Shane Warne.”

“Every team had its specialists. [Lance] Klusener, Jacques Kallis, Shaun Pollock, Allan Donald, Makhaya Ntini, there were five quality fast bowlers in every country. How many do you have now? There’s Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, but then what?” Shoaib Akhtar told Sportskeeda.

Akhtar also spoke about the ICC putting a lot of restrictions on the bowlers. “How many fast bowlers in the world have you seen who can bowl 150 kph, and how many people are allowed to play this game according to the old wishes?”

“The ICC has put a lot of restrictions, and what do you want? You want TRP, you will get it. But if you got to see the characters, you need to lift the restrictions.”