Former India skipper Virat Kohli hasn't looked his usual self over the last few months. The star batter, who relinquished Test captaincy following the team's series defeat in South Africa, hasn't been able to convert his starts into big scores and has often fallen prey to very unusual dismissals. His current spell with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) has also fetched him lowly scores but watching Kohli cream a classic cover drive is a treat for every cricket fan. (Also Read | IPL 2022 Coverage)
Kohli, labelled as one of the best batters to play the shot, is often compared to Pakistan's Babar Azam, who has also got an elegant cover drive in his stroke-play. There has always been a debate about who plays the shot well between both the cricketers, and Rajasthan Royals and England star Jos Buttler has named his pick.
"Who has the best cover drive in the game - Virat Kohli or Babar Azam? Butter was asked on ESPNcricinfo's Polite Enquiries. The Englishman responded, “I am going to say Virat Kohli.”
Earlier, Australia's Aaron Finch was also asked to pick between the two modern-day stars. Taking to Twitter, a KKR fan asked Finch, “Aaron who do you think plays the best cover drive #AskKKR”. The Aussie responded saying, “Virat Kohli and Babar Azam - it’s an absolute treat watching the two of these guys play that shot.”
Kohli has failed to score a century in his last 100 matches in all formats but Kohli remains a fan favourite despite poor form. The mercurial batter has played 101 Tests, 260 One-day internationals and 97 Twenty20 games for India since 2008, during which time he has amassed 23,650 runs across the three formats including 70 centuries.
{{/usCountry}}Kohli has failed to score a century in his last 100 matches in all formats but Kohli remains a fan favourite despite poor form. The mercurial batter has played 101 Tests, 260 One-day internationals and 97 Twenty20 games for India since 2008, during which time he has amassed 23,650 runs across the three formats including 70 centuries.
{{/usCountry}}His lean patch with the bat extended on Tuesday after he perished for a golden duck in IPL 2022 game against Lucknow Super Giants. He's managed to aggregate in seven games so far in the 10-team T20 tournament.
Kohli, 33, is chasing the elusive IPL title with Bangalore, a team he captained from 2013 to 2021. South Africa's Faf du Plessis is currently leading the Bangalore camp.