Mike Hesson warns Australia ahead of BGT 2024/25 -“Virat Kohli is at that stage in his career where he just wants to win games for India”

Virat Kohli is at a point in his career, according to Mike Hesson, where his main objective is to assist India in winning matches rather than setting personal records.

Not being able to hit 50 or more runs in Test cricket this year has caused the former captain of India to go through a slump. In the game’s longest format, he has only scored two hundreds since 2019. As his contemporaries in red-ball cricket, such as Steve Smith, Joe Root, and Kane Williamson, continue to improve, Kohli is finding it difficult to meet his high expectations.

Later this year, India is scheduled to defend the Border-Gavaskar Trophy when they travel to Australia to play Pat Cummins and company in a five-match Test series.

Mike Hesson believes it could be risky for the World Test Champions if Kohli puts his team’s performance first.

“In my opinion, Virat Kohli is at a point in his career where his only goal is to try to win matches for India. And I believe that’s a risky stage for opposing teams because the huge scores will come easily if he does that instead of concentrating on the stats. Holding a tempo is crucial in Australia, as is having the ability to counterattack and knowing when to do so. As previously said, the 30–60 overs are a crucial time.

Kohli will keep the game moving along if he is batting at that moment. It’s about spotting openings, attacking them, and getting ones and twos. If they try to attack him, he can then strike back,” Hesson told Jio Cinema.

Virat Kohli’s 2024 test results

Earlier this year, Kohli chose to skip the five-match Test series against England for personal reasons. He participated in India’s opening 2024 match, the second Test match against South Africa in Cape Town. The two innings saw the great batter score 12 and 46 runs.

In the just finished series against Bangladesh, the Delhi batsman made a comeback after skipping the Test matches against England. The thirty-five-year-old scored six and seventeen in the first Test in Chennai. In the second Test in Kanpur, he performed better, scoring 47 and 29*. In the lead-up to the highly anticipated Australia tour, India will host New Zealand for a three-match Test series.

Also Read: ‘I’ve not beaten India in a Test series yet’- Pat Cummins eager to tick another box in BGT

Ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which starts on November 22, Kohli would love to rack up some runs and boost his confidence.