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Cricket Players'Utter rubbish': Ex-PAK captain accuses 'attention-seeking' Simon Doull of 'narrow-minded thinking' for Kohli criticism
Reacting strongly to Doull's criticism, a former Pakistan captain has minced no words and lashed out at the ex-NZ quick for his lack of observation skills.
Simon Doull has lately been copping plenty of flak for certain bits of his commentary. During the PSL last month, the former New Zealand quick was highly vocal in his criticism surrounding Babar Azam's strike-rate. So much so that he and Aamer Sohail even got into a verbal argument while commentating on live TV. If that wasn't enough, Doull then turned his attention towards Virat Kohli in the IPL 2023, pointing out that the former RCB captain slowed down because of prioritising 'personal milestones'. Against Lucknow Super Giants, when Kohli was batting in top gear, Doull felt he became cautious because a half-century was there for the taking.
"Kohli started off like a train. He was going hammer and tongs as he was playing a lot of shots. From 42 to 50, he took 10 balls. Concerned about a milestone. I don't think there's room for that in this game anymore. Just got to keep going, especially with wickets in hand at that stage. You got to keep going,"
Reacting strongly to Doull's criticism, former Pakistan captain Salman Butt minced no words and lashed out at the ex-NZ quick for his lack of observation skills. Butt mentioned that Kohli, being the legend that he is, doesn't care about records or milestones at this stage in his career and raised questions on Doull's credentials as an expert.
"When he was in Pakistan, he used similar words for Babar Azam. If he had watched the game consciously, he would've noticed that Kohli tried to hit Bishnoi three four times but he missed. That is part of the game. He has 75 centuries in international cricket. He doesn't have to prove anything to anyone. It's utter rubbish. He (Doull) has played cricket, but he was a bowler," he said on his YouTube channel.
Butt then went on a rant, accusing Doull of 'narrow-minded thinking' and seeking attention. Stressing on how Kohli could care less about personal milestones, the former Pakistan batter explained that even if Virat dropped his tempo, it is because of the way he plays and the fact that a class player like him will always out a prize on his wicket.
"Young players often play like this as getting to milestone might secure their place in the team. Why would Kohli do that? This is RCB we are talking about. He is not fighting for his place in the Indian team. He is a world class player. Get a life. Get out of this narrow-minded thinking. All the big players like Babar, Virat and Williamson are not power-hitters. They put value on their wicket. Maybe he's trying to get attention," he added.
