At big stages, India needs someone who has 'been there, done that': Manjrekar on Virat Kohli's role in ODIs ahead of World Cup

NEW DELHI: Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar said that with his current state of play, ODIs are just the right format for star batter Virat Kohli and his presence for India at the big stages will be extremely valuable because he has "been there, done that". India's journey towards the World Cup at home will gain greater intensity as they start their Asia Cup campaign against Pakistan on September 2.

After this, Men in Blue's next big test will be the World Cup at home from October 5 onwards. India will start their campaign against Australia in Chennai on October 8. During these times, India will no doubt need their in-form star Virat at his absolute best because of his ability to perform under pressure and win games single-handedly.

"Great player who has had a great journey. But people change, players change and skills change as well. At this stage, you see that Rohit Sharma, his greatest skill and impact is visible in Test cricket. I expect Virat to have a great WC," said Sanjay on Star Sports. "With his current state of play, you would think that 50-overs is just the right format for him," he added. "On the big stage, he has done it for India on many occasions. You get excited about many young and rising players. But on a big night, we need a player, who has been there, done that. That is where Virat becomes so valuable for India," concluded the former batter.

Virat has been in good form this year. In 10 ODIs this year, he has scored 427 runs at an average of 53.37, with two tons and a fifty and a best of 166 against Sri Lanka.

In 17 international matches across formats this year in 19 innings, he has scored 984 runs at an average of 54.66 with four centuries and two fifties. His best score is 186 against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

He also had a good IPL 2023. Though his team Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) could not reach the playoffs, he scored 639 runs in 14 innings at an average of 53.25, with a strike rate of 139.25 and scored two centuries and six fifties in his 14 innings. He ended the tournament as the fourth-highest run-getter.

Virat is a modern ODI great and easily one of the greatest ever too. With 12,898 runs in 275 matches at an average of 57.32, with 46 centuries and 65 fifties, fans wil be expecting Virat's statistics to see a major uptick in the coming months and he at least touches 13,000-14,000 ODI runs by the time year ends. They will also have their eyes on Virat for breaking the record of most ODI centuries scored by Sachin Tendulkar (49 tons) and become the first-ever player with 50 ODI tons. Solid, tournament-winning performances in the Asia Cup and World Cup can establish Virat as the undisputed greatest in ODIs.

In 26 World Cup matches, Virat has scored 1,030 runs at an average of 46.81 and a strike rate of 86.70, with the best score of 107. He has two centuries and six fifties in the 50-over Cricket World Cup. In the ODI Asia Cup, Virat has scored 613 runs in 10 innings across 11 matches, with three centuries and a fifty, with the best score of 183.

In the Asia Cup, Pakistan, India and Nepal are in Group A while Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka are in Group B. The tournament will follow a hybrid model with Pakistan hosting four matches across two venues and Sri Lanka hosting the remaining games. The six group-stage matches will be followed by the Super Fours, beginning September 6. The final will be played by the top two teams at the end of the Super Fours on September 17 in Colombo.

Indian Squad: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna.