The Indian cricket team’s batting superstar Virat Kohli faced an unrelenting torment from Sri Lankan bowlers, ending up LBW in all three ODIs of the recently concluded series, which was won by the hosts with a 2-0 margin on Wednesday, August 7, at the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo.
Kohli was dismissed in near-identical fashion each time in the ODI series, leaving fans and experts, including Aakash Chopra, stunned by this rare and alarming trend. In the opening ODI, the dashing right-hander was dismissed LBW by Sri Lanka’s leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga for 24 runs.
Virat Kohli’s rare series of LBWs stuns Aakash Chopra
This was only the start of the disaster, as the leg-spinner Jeffrey Vandersay continued the trend in the second ODI, trapping Virat Kohli LBW for just 14 runs during Sri Lanka’s 32-run win over Team India in Colombo.
The final ODI saw Virat Kohli fall once again to a left-arm spinner, with 21-year-old Dunith Wellalage taking him out LBW for 20 runs from 18 balls during India’s embarrassing 110-run defeat in the third game on Wednesday in Colombo.
The left-arm spinners have now been Kohli’s Achilles’ heel, dismissing him 10 times in ODI cricket since 2022, with an average of just 24.1 runs per dismissal. This ODI series was a nightmare for Kohli, facing a barrage of deliveries that exposed his weaknesses against spin in the turning conditions.
Kohli unsuccessfully challenges the umpire’s decisions in the ODI series
Adding insult to his woes, Kohli utilized the decision review system three times during the ODI series, attempting to overturn the umpire’s decisions, but he could not save himself from the clutches of Sri Lanka’s spin attack.
This series will go down in history as one of the most challenging ones for the Indian batting icon, exposing his vulnerability that had rarely been seen before. The relentless onslaught of LBW dismissals of Kohli left Chopra stunned.
Analyzing Kohli’s struggles on the Sri Lanka tour, the former Indian cricketer has pointed out that this was a rare occurrence that the star batter was out LBW three times in a row, as he couldn’t recall when this happened before.
The commentator pointed out that Kohli was getting out in a similar manner, either going back or forward incorrectly or playing deliveries off the wrong line in the three-match ODI series in Colombo. Aakash Chopra also mentioned that Kohli even used the DRS three times, unsuccessfully challenging the umpire’s decisions.
Virat was able to dominate: Aakash Chopra
The former India batter also noted that the Sri Lanka versus India ODI series badly exposed Virat Kohli’s struggle against the spinners and his inability to dominate, which was quite unexpected for him at least.
Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel: “Virat Kohli, three matches, three leg before. I don’t remember when it happened last time that Virat Kohli got a leg before three times. When he went back once, when he went forward twice, when he played in the wrong line.”
Chopra further noted, “When he got out three times, he also used the review three times. I mean, he used the review in the second game earlier. When he got out, maybe he didn’t do it. But it didn’t look like he was able to dominate. So, this was a little surprising.”