Virat Kohli marked his return to form in the Asia Cup with a sensational century in India's final match of the tournament against Afghanistan. While India may have disappointed in the tournament, it was a different story for Kohli on a personal level. The former India captain finished as the second highest run scorer in the tournament and scored his first international century in nearly three years. Moreover, his 122 not out off 61 balls broke the record for the highest score by any Indian batter in T20Is and all of it he had done in the only game in the tournament in which he opened the batting.
This has led to debates over whether Kohli should be opening the batting in the upcoming T20 World Cup in place of the struggling KL Rahul. Former India wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel has said that it was fairly obvious that Kohli should be opening with Rohit. “It's very clear. If I was clear that Virat Kohli should be opening in Asia Cup, he should be opening in World Cup as well. It just gives the right balance,” said Parthiv on Cricbuzz.
"They (Kohli and Rohit Sharma) are two different kind of players. One goes very aggressive (from the beginning), can hit boundaries, and there is Kohli who finds gaps and creates boundaries. If Rohit and Kohli can play till the first six overs I have no doubt that even in Australian conditions more often than not they will get India to around fifty. That is a good score without losing a wicket. Kohli is probably India's best batter suited for those conditions. So why not. You have got your two best batters playing the first six overs. If you have wickets in hand, that has always been the recipe for success for any T20 team."
Kohli's alarming drop in strike rate in T20 cricket and his general poor form in other formats had led to questions on whether he would find a place in the Indian squad for the World Cup or not before the Asia Cup. However, Parthiv said that the 33-year-old was getting runs and it is just that he was not matching up to his own lofty standards.
{{/usCountry}}Kohli's alarming drop in strike rate in T20 cricket and his general poor form in other formats had led to questions on whether he would find a place in the Indian squad for the World Cup or not before the Asia Cup. However, Parthiv said that the 33-year-old was getting runs and it is just that he was not matching up to his own lofty standards.
{{/usCountry}}“There was no question about Kohli's place. It was just about the form. The expectations are always high because he has set the bar so high. We always talk about his big scores and centuries. He was scoring runs, still getting fifties, but everyone is so obsessed about those centuries. There was never a question of whether he will go to the World Cup or not,” he said.