Zaheer Khan clearly against Virat Kohli batting at number four in World Cup

Virat Kohli’s batting position in the upcoming World Cup has been a major topic of debate ever since head coach Ravi Shastri insisted that the skipper could be moved to the number four position if the situation demands so. Since then, the Indian cricketing fraternity has been divided into two halves with one supporting Shastri’s views and the other vehemently opposing it. Former Indian pacer Zaheer Khan is one of those who are against this particular move.

Kohli then added further fuel to the fire stating that he could bat at number four in England if the team needs him to do so. The primary reason behind this possible shift is India’s failure to find a player who can deliver consistently at that important position. India’s latest experiment Ambati Rayudu has also failed to live up to the expectations so far. He was recently dropped for the fourth match of the ongoing series against Australia which more or less proved that India are yet to finalise their man for that slot.

Well, the time has run out for the Men in Blue to experiment and they only have the remaining one ODI against Australia before they fly to England for the all-important competition. But while only time will tell whether Kohli bats at his usual number three position or comes at number four, Zaheer feels demoting Kohli would be a defensive move.

“In the last few games, we haven’t got the starts, which we used to. What if the same repeats in England conditions? How we are going to tackle it? Maybe, the option is to play Virat Kohli at number 4 but I don’t agree with that. I think it is a negative kind of a move. It is a defensive move,” Zaheer told Cricbuzz.

“It is actually protecting your best batsman. Your number 3 batsman should be given enough opportunity and Kohli is well used to it. When you got that why changing the order. If Virat bats at number 4, I think it is not the right sign for India going forward,” he added to his lines,” he added.

Kohli’s record at number four:

While the Indian skipper has batted mainly at number three in his ODI career, his record at number four is also impressive. So far, he has scored 1744 runs at the position at an average of 58.13 which includes seven centuries. He, however, last batted at this position in 2015.

Changing his slot right into the World Cup could backfire and it could eventually disturb the balance and derail India’s campaign.

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