Former Indian national cricket team captain and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Sourav Ganguly has given a firm verdict on the future of modern day great Virat Kohli.
Virat Kohli has struggled with his form, particularly in Test cricket, and had a terrible run in the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy Down Under.
The right-handed batsman's fight surprised Sourav Ganguly, who expected him to set fire to the Test series against the Pat Cummins-led side.
Virat Kohli smashed a ton in BGT 2024-25
Kohli began the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy on a positive note as he smashed a magnificent century in the second innings of the Test series opener at the Perth Stadium.
However, things have completely changed since then as the batsman started to struggle while facing the Aussie pacers and his outside weakness off the off stump was fully exposed.
He was dismissed eight times while chasing deliveries outside the off-stump, which raised serious question marks over the modern great's technique.
Overall, Kohli scored 190 runs in BGT 2024-25 at an average of 23.75 as India lost the trophy for the first time in a decade.
To me he is probably the greatest white ball player the world has seen – Sourav Ganguly
Ganguly, meanwhile, called Kohli the greatest white-ball player of all time but expressed surprise at his failures in the Test series against Australia.
“I think Virat Kohli is a once-in-a-lifetime player for men's cricket. To score 80 international 100s in a career is incredible. To me, he is probably the greatest white-ball player the world has seen,” Sourav Ganguly said during a Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) event.
“But I was really surprised with the way he batted after he got 100 in Perth. He struggled before that year, but I thought after the 100 in Perth, it would be a big run for him. But I think it happens. Every player has his weakness and strength. There isn't a player in the world who doesn't have that. That's how you adapt to your weaknesses while playing great bowlers over a period of time,” he added.
I still feel there is a lot of cricket left in Virat Kohli – Sourav Ganguly
The former India captain, however, was of the opinion that Virat Kohli's end is not far off at this point and he still has a lot of cricket left in him.
Sourav Ganguly said the biggest challenge for Virat Kohli will be the Test tour in England in 2025 and he was not worried about the batsman's form heading into the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy.
“I still feel there is a lot of cricket left in Virat Kohli. A tour of England will be a big challenge for him. I am not too worried about his form in the Champions Trophy,” Ganguly said
“Like I said, he is probably the best white-ball player the world has seen in a long time. He will score runs in the tournament in those conditions. I think India are one of the contenders for the Champions Trophy,” he said. added.