2nd Test: Virat Kohli has lost his off-stump, says Michael Vaughan

Indian skipper Virat Kohli is currently facing a rather serious dip in form and it is becoming a bit of an issue for the national team. Kohli only made 20 runs in India’s second innings in the second of the five-match Test series being played between India and England. The match is being held at the iconic Lord’s venue. Kohli’s poor form with the bat has prompted questions regarding what might have gone wrong. Former England cricketer Michael Vaughan said that the Indian skipper might have lost his off-stump again. However, Vaughan believes that Kohli is a much better player now and would undoubtedly bounce back from his current predicament.

“Really good bowling, not good batting. Virat Kohli is a better player than that. When he had success in English conditions, he was knowing exactly where his off-stump is. His trigger movement goes over to the off-stump and he knows where it is,” Vaughan said on BBC’s Test Match Special podcast.

“So far in this series, I just wonder whether he lost his off-stump because he is going over quite a long way and his head is going with him because of that, I think he thinks his off-stump is around the fourth and fifth stump line. He needs to get back into alignment,” he continued.

“He played at a wide ball from the pavilion end and you would think, that’s exactly where England want you to be Virat. They are going to bowl the fifth stump, full of length. And they want him to throw his hands at the ball as he did today,” added the England skipper.

LAPSE IN CONCENTRATION

India ended Day 4 of the second Test match with a score of 181-6 on the board. They had a lead of 154 runs at the time. Despite the poor performance of Kohli in the game, Indian batting coach Vikram Rathour attributed the dismissal to a rare lapse in concentration on the part of the Team India skipper. He believes that the batter will be up and running in no time.

“Kohli, I don’t think there was any issue, it was just a lapse in concentration today, where his bat went to the ball, which he shouldn’t have played and nothing more, I don’t think anything old (is) coming back,” the batting coach said.

The match is currently tipped in England’s favour. Their problem will be taking four wickets and then chasing down whatever total is on the board to take the lead in the Test series. If their bowlers perform at the top of their game, they could completely topple the Indian batting lineup by lunch. If they manage to restrict the Indians from getting a lead of over 250, they could achieve a win. Given skipper Joe Root’s form, it does not seem like a far-fetched task.

For India, the key would be to hold on as much as possible. Kohli would be relying on his tail-enders to stretch the Indian innings as much as possible. Even if the target for England is not big, they could just take long enough to force a draw. It would take a monumental effort from the Indian bowlers if Kohli wants to record a historic victory against England at Lords.