'It will be dangerous to cut Kohli off': Australia legend issues stern warning to Team India selectors ahead of T20 WC

Virat Kohli has not hit a century since 2019 and has been under fire for his extended lean patch, with questions being raised over his future.

A robust Indian side without Virat Kohli will take on West Indies with eyes on a second successive clean sweep in the three-match series. The Twent20 assignment will also be crucial to India's plans for the World T20, which is less than three months away. As Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid look to build a strong eleven for the showpiece event, the spotlight remains on Virat Kohli, who has looked like a pale shadow of his former self.

India's Virat Kohli during practice  (Reuters)

The star batter managed just 11 and 20 in the fifth and final Test against Edgbaston and continued his bad performances in T20Is, where he could score only 12 runs in two innings. His batting slump also continued in the ODIs, as he mustered 17 and 16 runs in the two games. Kohli has not hit a century since 2019 and has been under fire for his extended lean patch, with questions being raised over his future.

Amidst the uproar, Australia great Adam Gilchrist feels Kohli shouldn't be written off as he has set "high" batting standards. “It will be dangerous to cut Virat off at the moment. He is, maybe, a break away from freshening up. He has such vast experience. He has set a high standard for a long time, so we are judging against a great player,” Gilchrist told reporters on the sidelines of an interaction with budding city cricketers at the Mumbai Cricket Association’s Bandra-Kurla Complex indoor academy.

Gilchrist also chose India to achieve a top-four finish at the World T20 but said the hosts wouldn't be easy to beat in home conditions.

"India are a talented squad of players and you can say that they are playing right now without their first eleven but getting great results. They are broadening their squad and filling this talent pool with international experience, so they have as good a chance as any team in Australia."

“Australia in home conditions will be very difficult [to beat]. Though I cannot pick a winner, I’m sure India will be in the top four along with Australia, England and Pakistan,” he added.

Talking about Kohli, the ex-India skipper has received support from many former players including Babar Azam, Kevin Pietersen and Shoaib Akhtar. Australia legend Ricky Ponting also said that the Indian team management should help Kohli to restore his confidence instead of frequently changing his position in the eleven. He dismissed the Indian batter's omission from the T20 World Cup squad.

"They probably should be trying to find new ways to get him back into the form and help him out," the former Australia skipper told 'The ICC Review'.

"That (moving him up the order) quite often comes at the expense of someone else as well, you are moving someone else around trying to find a spot for Virat. He has opened the batting, he's batted at No.3 in the IPL in the last couple of years and done the same for India.

"Moving him around will make him feel that people are worried about him, and he will be more unsettled."