Throwdown from 16 yards, playing on cement slab: How Bangar is helping Virat Kohli eliminate major backfoot weakness
Virat Kohli worked with Sanjay Bangar ahead of his comeback for Delhi in the Ranji Trophy.
Virat Kohli is leaving no stone unturned as he prepares for his Ranji Trophy comeback after a gap of more than 12 years. Struggling for consistency in international cricket, the former Indian captain is addressing technical flaws in his game by turning to a trusted mentor: former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar.
Known for his role during Kohli's most productive years between 2014 and 2019, Bangar reportedly conducted a special training session focused on enhancing Kohli's backfoot play.
According to PTI, the session, held at a facility outside Mumbai developed by Bangar himself, aimed to tackle Kohli’s challenges against deliveries on and outside the off-stump channel, an area that has troubled him in recent outings.
Bangar was seen feeding Kohli with throwdown from 16 yards with focus on playing the rising deliveries on the backfoot. A portable cement slab (with attached wheels) was placed at the back of length (mid-pitch between 8-10m length) to feed the batter with back of length deliveries that rise steeply.
The objective was clear: expand Kohli’s range of strokes square of the wicket, an area that has seen limited scoring contributions in his illustrious career.
Kohli’s reliance on front-foot play, particularly the cover drive, has been a hallmark of his batting style. However, with bowlers increasingly targeting the channel around outside off-stump against him, his backfoot play has come under scrutiny. To address this, the training session emphasized square cuts and square drives – two shots that have been notably absent from Kohli’s wagon wheel in recent years.
These adjustments could prove pivotal as he prepares to face Railways in Delhi’s league game starting January 30 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
"When Kohli's feedback was sought post 2019 World Cup, he had given a glowing certificate to Bangar, stating that as a batter, he had benefitted a lot from his technical inputs during all those years," a senior BCCI official said. Bangar’s influence on Kohli was evident even after his stint with the Indian team, as he became associated with Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
DDCA's preparation
The Delhi & Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) is gearing up for a significant turnout, expecting at least 10,000 fans to watch Kohli in action. “There has never been any entry fee charged for watching Ranji matches and the same custom would follow,” said a senior DDCA official.
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