Virat Kohli’s exemplary work ethic continues to serve as a source of inspiration for his teammates, and the Indian superstar remains committed to raising the bar for himself, said Royal Challengers Bengaluru batting coach Dinesh Karthik on Thursday.
Karthik said Kohli remains as hungry as ever to improve and expand his repertoire as a batter. “You speak to him even today – just now as I came out – he wanted to work on one more shot. At this stage of his career, for him to still want to add something new to his game tells you everything about his hunger,” Karthik said. “He just wants to improve and keep raising the bar. That’s what makes him a special player,” he added on the eve of the CSK–RCB clash in Chennai.
The former RCB batter who retired at the end of the last IPL season noted that Kohli’s spin game in white-ball cricket has seen a marked improvement despite his recent struggles.
“He’s coming on some serious runs in the Champions Trophy. He’s batted well in the recent past against spin, especially in white-ball cricket. So, I don’t want to go too deep into stats,” Karthik.
“I’m not very aware. But if I remember, in the World Cup final, he got runs where it mattered. And apart from that, in the Champions Trophy, he had a good tournament, the second-highest run-getter for India.
“And that doesn’t come without playing spin because, in Dubai, as you all know, how well it helped the spinners, he was very aware. So, I believe right now, he is batting as well as he has ever done.”
Asked if playing spin is a problem area for the RCB batters, Karthik said, “I don’t think there’s any problem. We played one match, a completely new side to what we had last year. One of the strengths, I believe, is the way we play spin. And as this tournament unfolds, you’ll see it happen.
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“CSK have three good spinners, no doubt. But we also have very good batters, competent batsmen, who we trust. One of the reasons why we picked them is how well they play spin.”