Kohli Can Be 'Intimidating' In Dressing Room, Says Former RCB Coach

Agencies
February 5, 2018

Former South Africa coach Ray Jennings feels that India captain Virat Kohlican be "intimidating in the dressing room" and it would be great if he gets a good guide, who can maximise his potential as a leader. Jennings has witnessed Kohli progress from his days as an U-19 cricketer as he was associated as a coach with Royal Challengers Bangalore.

"As captain, I think, he is still not at his best. The Indian cricket system has to feed off Virat Kohli. Going from MS Dhoni to Kohli has been a drastic change. Dhoni is so calm and Kohli is the complete opposite. He can be intimidating the dressing room and sometimes his teammates can wonder who Kohli really is," Jennings said.

Kohli can instill "fear" in youngsters, is Jennings' observation and that's why a calm mentor is need of the hour.

"There can be a fear factor in the dressing room and you don't want that with so many youngsters coming into the side.

Indian cricket, thus, has to find people who can help and influence Kohli into ways of improving and becoming an even better leader," Jennings said.

But Jennings insisted that Kohli will get better with age.

"With age, Kohli will get better and calm down a lot naturally. He will not be so aggressive and in your face all the time. But in certain situations, when things are not so calm or even just to take that fear factor away from the dressing room, who will teach Kohli to become a better version of himself?

"He is smart enough and passionate enough to want to change. He wants to be the best, and he does have skills to be the best player in the world, yet he needs some assistance," he added.

Kohli scored his 33rd ODI hundred in the first match at Durban and followed it up with 46 not out in the second match at Centurion.

He has scored 3 hundreds in his last 5 ODIs as well as finished the top run-getter in the three-Test series against South Africa.

"At this age, he already has 33 ODI hundreds and he is in touching distance of the best-ever seen in ODI cricket (Sachin Tendulkar). He has another 10 years left in him, atleast, so there's no reason why in 3-4 years he cannot get better and better.

"I think 32 is the best age for any batsman and he is yet to get there, so you can add a few more hundreds to that 33 mark," said Jennings, who has seen Kohli from the opposition coach during the 2008 U-19 World Cup.

"I was the coach of South Africa Under-19s when he led India to the Under-19 World Cup win (2008). From that time itself, I thought he was someone who stood out in his age group in terms of batting."

"In all my experience, he is the best player against spin that I have ever seen. Is he better than Sir Don Bradman? I don't know, but he is definitely amongst the top-two batsmen in the world at the moment," declared the veteran coach.

"People talk about his overseas record, but in the Test series, he outscored Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers and Faf Du Plessis in their home conditions," he added.

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News Network
June 29,2020

Jun 29: The West Indies cricketers will sport a 'Black Lives Matter' logo on the collars of their shirts during the upcoming three-Test series against England to protest against racism in sports.

Skipper Jason Holder, who has voiced his support to the cause that has once again come to the forefront after the killing of American George Floyd, said in a statement on Sunday: "We believe we have a duty to show solidarity and also to help raise awareness."

The ICC-approved logo, designed by Alisha Hosannah, will be the one which featured in the shirts of all 20 Premier League football clubs since the sport's resumption earlier this month.

"This is a pivotal moment in history for sports, for the game of cricket and for the West Indies cricket team," Holder was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

"We have come to England to retain the Wisden Trophy but we are very conscious of happenings around the world and the fight for justice and equality. "As a group of young men, we know of the rich and diverse history of West Indies cricket and we know we are guardians of the great game for a generation to come."

Holder, who wants racism to be treated at par with doping and corruption, said they arrived at the decision to wear the logo after much thought.

"We did not take our decision lightly. We know what it is for people to make judgments because of the colour of our skin, so we know what it feels like, this goes beyond the boundary. There must be equality and there must be unity. Until we get that as people, we cannot stop," he said.

"We have to find some way to have equal rights and people must not be viewed differently because of the colour of their skin or ethnic background."

The West Indies players are likely to wear the shirts for the first time in this week's four-day warm-up match at Emirates Old Trafford, starting on Monday.

The opening Test of the series, which will mark the resumption of international cricket after the coronavirus-forced hiatus, will get underway at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton on July 8.

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News Network
March 27,2020

New Delhi, Mar 27: India skipper Virat Kohli on Friday made a heartfelt appeal to the citizens of the country, asking them to follow social distancing as a precautionary measure against the coronavirus pandemic.
He also went on to say that over the past few days, he has seen some people still taking to the streets, and added that if people still continue to venture out, then they are not being honest with the country.
Kohli released a small video clip on Twitter, making the public appeal and captioned the post as: "Please wake up to the reality and seriousness of the situation and take responsibility. The nation needs our support and honesty"
"Today, I am talking to you as a citizen of the country. Whatever I have seen over the past few days, I have seen people not following the lockdown, it has made me feel that some people are taking the battle against COVID-19 very lightly. I request you all to please follow social distancing, whatever the government is asking you to do, please follow it," Kohli said in the video released on Twitter.
"Think about what can happen to your family members because of your negligence. Our medical experts are fighting this battle day in and day out. If you are still going out to the streets, then I don't think you are being honest to your country," he added.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi decided to impose a 21-day lockdown in the country as a precautionary measure against coronavirus.
According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the total number of COVID-19 positive cases have risen to 724 in India (including 640 active cases, 66 cured or discharged people) and 17 deaths.
The World Health Organisation had termed the coronavirus outbreak as a pandemic on March 11. 

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Agencies
January 14,2020

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