Kohli's highs and lows in England

Virat Kohli (Pic: AFP)

The Indian Test team has been thrust into uncertainty following Virat Kohli's unexpected retirement from the longest format on Monday, just weeks ahead of a crucial five-match series in England.

Kohli's final chapter in Test whites played out far from home, during a disastrous Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. Once a land of his triumphs and transformation, Australia became the backdrop to a painful farewell. His last innings was the same way of dismissal, edging behind after chasing another delivery outside off-stump from Scott Boland. Kohli has witnessed it all in Australia, from coming of age to dominance to utter helplessness against forces of age, muscle memory, and time.

2014: This was Kohli in his formative years in the longest format of the game, battling numerous ups and downs in his game. Riding on a successful New Zealand tour with the bat, where he scored 215 runs in four innings with a century and fifty, much was expected from Kohli on his first Test tour of England.

Instead, Kohli had a disastrous tour, where he struggled with the top-quality seam and swing bowling by the England pace duo of James Anderson and Stuart Broad. The class of this bowling duo, with over 1,300 wickets to their name, was too much for a 25-year-old Kohli, as he could score just 134 runs in 10 innings at a poor average of 13.40, with the best score of 39. He often struggled with the deliveries outside the off-stump line. Anderson brought this weakness to the front for the cricketing world to see, and he dismissed him four times. With each edge to an outside off-stump delivery, chinks in his armour were exposed.

2018: From 2016-19, Kohli had one of the best peaks ever by a batter in Test cricket, scoring 4,208 runs in 43 matches at an average of 66.79, with 16 centuries and 10 fifties. A crown jewel of this whole run was the England tour in 2018. Dedicating hours to honing his craft and overcoming his past weaknesses, Kohli was extremely keen to add to his monumental Test run and avenge his humiliation from Anderson and Broad. Kohli ended the tour with 593 runs in five matches at an average of 59.30, with two centuries and three fifties, topping the run-charts.

The 'King' had conquered England as well. Not once did he succumb to his foe, Anderson, but rather, he handled him with a mix of class and aggression that only he could have shown. With a loud roar following his century at Edgbaston, Kohli started a superhuman, lone warrior effort with the bat, which went in vain as India lost the series 4-1.

2021/22: This series came during Kohli's first real slump in form. This was a phase of his career when everyone realised that Kohli was a human after all and could have his ups and downs after years of delivering almost inhuman-level performances.

His struggles with the outside off-stump line and England's swing and seam movement once again resurfaced and led to him piling up average numbers. Kohli emerged as the eighth-highest run-getter, scoring 249 runs in nine matches at an average of 27.76, with two half-centuries and a couple of useful 40s. While these numbers do not look attractive, Kohli nevertheless put up a resilient fight in English conditions, but could not overcome them like he did back in 2018. His rivalry with Anderson was reignited, as he dismissed him twice.

Due to the up-and-down nature of these tours, Kohli's numbers in England do not do true justice to his talent and ability against world-class bowling in overseas conditions. Kohli has played 17 Tests in England, scoring 1,096 runs at an average of 33.21, with two centuries and five fifties in 33 innings and the best score of 149.

(With ANI inputs)