Former India batter Mohammed Kaif pointed out how every bowler, no matter how much experience he has, knows how to trouble Virat Kohli. Over time, there has been a pattern to Kohli’s dismissals, especially against pacers. Many times, Kohli has been out to deliveries pitched outside the off-stump. Earlier, people blamed his position at the batting crease, but now the issue seems to be with his forward press. Kohli often gets stuck in a position from where he cannot adjust to good-length balls, which could be played better if he didn’t commit to the front foot so early.
Take his dismissals in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy as an example. In the first innings in Perth, Kohli got out to a ball that bounced awkwardly and hit his gloves. It wasn’t an unplayable ball, though. By Kohli’s standards, he could have managed it. His early forward press created the problem. On Perth’s fast pitch, he didn’t have enough time to move his hands away. However, in the second innings, where the conditions were better for batting, Kohli played brilliantly. He took full advantage of the tired Australian pacers and scored a century—his 30th in Test cricket.
But in the pink-ball Test at Adelaide, the same story repeated. Kohli was dismissed in both innings by good-length balls pitched outside the off-stump. In the first innings, he again committed to the front foot too early, and in the second innings, Scott Boland bowled a beautiful ball in the “corridor of uncertainty,” making Kohli poke at it.
When asked about these dismissals, Sunil Gavaskar said that a batter who has 30 Test centuries surely knows how to bat. There’s no doubt about Kohli’s ability. But, as Matthew Hayden mentioned, it’s all about making the right decisions. In Perth’s second innings, Kohli made the correct choice by aligning himself with the ball’s line instead of staying beside it—something that has often led to his downfall.
Mohammed Kaif also highlighted this weakness. He said even a bowler like Boland, who doesn’t play regularly for Australia, knows where to bowl to Kohli. “Boland, who plays just two-three Tests in a year, knows exactly what to do against Kohli. Just pitch it outside the off-stump,and Kohli will fiddle with it, edge it, and get caught behind. This is an open secret,” Kaif said in a video shared on his social media.
Kohli’s weakness highlighted by Kaif
Kaif questioned why Indian pacers couldn’t exploit Travis Head’s weakness the same way Australian bowlers target Kohli. “If Boland knows how to trouble Kohli, why can’t we do the same to Travis Head? If his weakness is outside the off-stump, why aren’t we bowling there consistently? Every batter has a weakness.”
Kaif further said, “We all know Kohli’s weak point. Just bowl outside the off-stump, and he might edge it. Use the same approach against Travis Head. You need proper planning. Attack him from the first ball. Make a solid plan to target his weakness, and you’ll get him out.”
He added, “We’re making mistakes. I don’t believe this Australian team is so strong that we should be scared of them. We won the first match. Australia played well and won the second. The series is 1-1 now. The Indian team is strong, and when we go to the Gabba, we will make a comeback.”