Irfan Pathan rips into Virat Kohli over poor form: 'Does Indian cricket team deserve this from its senior player?'

Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has criticised Virat Kohli, questioning the senior player’s recent performances and its impact on the Indian cricket team’s results. Pathan expressed his concerns over Kohli’s form, raising the question, ‘Does the Indian cricket team deserve this from its senior player?’ read more

Irfan Pathan has questioned consistent low returns from Virat Kohli in Test cricket over the last five years. Image: AP/Irfan Pathan on X

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan was highly critical of Virat Kohli as India suffered a 3-1 loss on Sunday to Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Kohli scored a hundred in the opening Test in Perth but added just 90 runs in his remaining eight innings, getting out all eight times caught behind the wicket either by the wicket-keeper or a slip fielder.

Analysing how Kohli’s poor form has impacted India’s chances of winning matches, Pathan said that it’s time for India to move on from “superstar culture” and they should look to build a team culture. He also questioned why Kohli doesn’t play domestic cricket when he has consistently failed to solve the issue of getting caught behind.

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“India don’t need superstar culture, India need team culture," Pathan said on Star Sports. “When was the last time Virat Kohli played domestic cricket? It has been more than a decade. Even Sachin Tendulkar has played domestic cricket more recently, and he has retired. He didn’t need it but he played… who can teach batting to Kohli, he has made a lot of runs but since 2024, in the first innings where the foundation is laid in a match, Kohli has an average of 15.”

Irfan wants youngsters to replace Kohli

Irfan Pathan added that Kohli’s prolonged poor form means India would have been better off giving opportunities to younger players in place of the 36-year-old batter.

“If we look at last five years stats then Kohli doesn’t even have an average of 30. Does the Indian cricket team deserve this from its senior player? It would be much better to give regular opportunities to a youngster, ask him to get ready, even he will give you an average of 25-30. Because we are talking about the team here, it’s not about the individuals,” he added.

Time to shift the spotlight! 🌟 #IrfanPathan calls for an end to the superstar culture, emphasizing the importance of building a strong team-first mentality in Indian cricket💬🇮🇳#AUSvINDOnStar #ToughestRivalry #WTC #WorldTestChampionship pic.twitter.com/YQ6TKJUXe4 — Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) January 5, 2025

“We are not degrading Virat Kohli. He has scored a lot of runs and played superbly for India, but you are repeating the same mistake again and again. Sunny sir (Sunil Gavaskar) has pointed it out, and he is here on the ground. How long does it take to come to Sunny sir and talk about that mistake? It takes hard work to rectify that mistake, and I didn’t see any of that.”

While Kohli has a career average of 46.85, having scored 9230 in 123 matches, he has only scored 2028 runs in 39 Tests at 30.72 since the start of 2020.

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