'By this logic, Dravid could've been an opener, Tendulkar would've opened in Tests': Sehwag's blunt verdict on Kohli
Virat Kohli smashed a century for the first time since 2019 as he opened the innings in the game against Afghanistan in the 2022 Asia Cup on Thursday.
Team India's star batter Virat Kohli made a sensational return to run-scoring in the 2022 Asia Cup. Kohli, who was on over a month-long break from the game following an extended patch of low-scoring games, smashed a century and two half-centuries in five matches of the continental tournament this year. By the end of India's campaign in the edition, Kohli remains the highest run-getter in the tournament.
On Thursday, Kohli opened the innings alongside KL Rahul in the absence of skipper Rohit Sharma, who was rested for the game. The former Indian captain forged a 119-run stand for the opening wicket alongside the stand-in skipper Rahul, and reached his century in the 19th over of the Indian innings with a six. Kohli eventually remained unbeaten on 122 off just 61 deliveries, breaking the record for the highest individual score by an Indian in a T20I innings (previously held by Rohit Sharma).
Following the game, the 33-year-old batter was lauded for his long-awaited ton; there were also discussions over his potential batting position, with a number of fans suggesting that India might just opt Kohli for the opening role. However, former Indian opener Virender Sehwag doesn't agree.
During an extensive discussion over Kohli's knock in the game against Afghanistan, Sehwag insisted that a single innings cannot possibly the reason for the shift in the position altogether. “No. By this logic, even Rahul Dravid could have been in opener. Sachin Tendulkar could have opened in Tests as well. They have also played big knocks in 1-2 innings as openers. I guess Dravid even scored some 160-170 runs and had remained unbeaten when we forged a 400-run partnership for the opening wicket in a Test,” Sehwag said on Cricbuzz.
“It was just because the captain wasn't playing, that's why Kohli opened,” he further stated.
Sehwag also made a massive claim on Kohli's form, insisting that the batter could now reach 100 international tons, now that he has got the monkey off his back. “Now that he has scored a century, I won't be surprised if this stops at 100 (international centuries). Then, we will see when he gets his 101st,” Sehwag said.
