"It's about time Virat Kohli delivers big" - former Pakistan captain Salman Butt ahead of IND vs SA 2021

Former Pakistan opener Salman Butt believes the impending South Africa tour will be crucial for India’s red-ball skipper Virat Kohli amid the hullabaloo regarding the split captaincy. Butt feels Kohli will have a major role to play with Rohit Sharma ruled out of the Tests against the Proteas.

The former left-handed batter reckons Kohli will have to come up with exceptional batting performances despite his form not being great in recent times.

But said during a recent live session on his official YouTube channel:

"Virat Kohli's role as captain and as a player has become all the more important in the absence of the experienced Rohit Sharma. Looking at his current form, it's about time he delivers big."

Meanwhile, the upcoming South Africa-India series is set to be played without any spectators, owing to increasing COVID-19 cases in the Rainbow Nation. Cricket South Africa (CSA) confirmed the same on Monday, December 20. The Test series is scheduled to kickoff on Boxing Day (26th December) at SuperSport Park in Centurion.

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"Virat Kohli and the BCCI have handled their issues in the right way" - Salman Butt

Salman Butt, in the video, also spoke about how both Virat Kohli and the Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) have handled the ongoing captaincy saga in Indian cricket carefully. He feels that both parties have been right in their approach.

The former Pakistan skipper added that if Kohli manages to have a successful tour and is able to secure India's maiden Test series win in South Africa, then a lot of those issues could be ignored. Butt said:

"Both Kohli and BCCI have handled their issues in the right way. If he plays well and wins the series then a lot of things could be swept under the carpet. That's how it works."

The last time Team India were in South Africa, during the 2017-18 tour, they lost the Test series by a 2-1 margin.