'His performance puts pressure on Virat': Ex-India batter singles out in-form star, shoots warning to struggling Kohli

Besides Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja and Shreyas Iyer have joined the Indian T20 squad. India will lock horns with England for the second T20I on Saturday at Birmingham.

Hardik Pandya shone with his maiden Twenty20 international half-century and fourfer, which set up India's dominant 50-run win over England in the series opener in Southampton. The 28-year-old was his aggressive self, hitting six fours and one towering six en route 51 before being dismissed. He picked up four wickets to fold England for just 148 in their faltering run-chase. While Hardik took centre stage with his all-round showing, Suryakumar Yadav (39) and Deepak Hooda (33) laid the foundation of an imposing total.

Former India captain Virat Kohli (Getty Images)

In absence of Virat Kohli, batting at the No. 3 spot has Hooda thriving for the national side. The right-handed batter, who hit a 17-ball 33 on Thursday, has got four 30-plus scores including a century in his last four games. He put on a blistering 104 and hit nine fours and six sixes in his 57-ball masterpiece against Ireland. Hooda continues to flourish at the biggest stage, while Kohli has a different story to tell. The star batter has looked like a shadow of his former self.

Kohli, 33, has been going through a prolonged lean patch and has not hit a century since 2019. He scored just 31 across the two innings in Edgbaston Test. As Kohli – who has played only two T20 games since the last World T20 – returns to the set-up with the second Twenty20, it remains to be seen whether India tinkers with Hooda's batting position.

Former India batter Wasim Jaffer believes Hooda's consistent performances will mount pressure on Kohli, who has been searching consistency for over two years now. In the recent IPL, Kohli averaged 22.73 across the tournament, his lowest since the 2010 season. Hooda, on the other hand, scored 451 runs at 32.21 for Lucknow Super Giants.

“Hooda’s performance will put pressure on Virat Kohli when he comes back. You’ve got a guy who has done so well, performed consistently in the IPL and the T20Is as well. The pressure might bring out the best of Virat Kohli,” said Jaffer on ESPNCricinfo.

“You’ve got to like the way they accelerated and the momentum they batted with. This was missing in the last T20 World Cup, all the time. They are going with that aggressive approach, which is very refreshing to see,” he further said.

Jaffer also wants the team to play with a similar attacking approach when other starts including Kohli and KL Rahul return to the T20 set-up. India are currently looking for the perfect team combination in the lead-up to this year's T20 World Cup in Australia.

“This is the brand of cricket they need to play if they want to dominate this format. This is something we would like to see from the main guys as well,” Jaffer added.

Besides Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja and Shreyas Iyer have also joined the T20 squad following a break after the rescheduled fifth Test. India and England will be squaring off for the second T20I on Saturday at Birmingham.