Ian Chappell claims Virat Kohli is the best all-format batsman in the world

According to former Australia captain Ian Chappell, Indian cricket team skipper Virat Kohli is unquestionably the best all-format batsman in the world at the moment. During a conversation with Radhakrishnan Sreenivasan on his YouTube channel, the former Australian batsman was asked if he felt Virat Kohli had pulled ahead of his peers in the game.

“Of that group(Smith,Williamson,Root and Kohli), Kohli is the best in all three forms. That is unquestionable. His record in all three forms is quite unbelievable, really. Particularly, his record in the shorter forms. I’m not surprised, having listened to Kohli talk about batting. He makes a lot of sense. And again, I like his approach to batting,” Ian Chappell said.

Virat Kohli has been in incredible form for many years now and finds himself at the top of the mountain in the ICC Rankings for batsmen in ODIs. The Delhi batsman also finds himself in the top 10 (second in Tests, tenth in T20Is) in the other two formats of the game.

Ian Chappell picks Virat Kohli ahead of Steve Smith as a batsman or captaincy.

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) April 30, 2020

Virat Kohli's ability to play traditional shots similar to Viv Richards

The Australian believes that Virat Kohli’s ability to play proper cricketing strokes and still score at a swift rate is what puts him ahead of the rest. Chappell also compared the Indian skipper’s ability to execute traditional cricket shots with that of Sir Viv Richards.

“We did an interview with him the last time that India were here (in Australia). One of the things that he talked about was why he didn’t play the fancy shots, the innovative shots of particularly T20 cricket. And he said that he didn’t want it to creep into his batting in the longer form of the game,” Ian Chappell said.

“And if you look at the best short form player in the time that I played, it was Viv Richards. Viv just played normal cricket shots. But he played them so well and he placed the ball so well that he was able to score at a very, very fast rate. Kohli is the same. He just plays the traditional cricket shots but he plays them very well. He hits them in the gaps,” the cricketer-turned-commentator added.

Ian Chappell also lauded Virat Kohli’s incredible physical ability. In addition to his stroke-making, the Aussie believes that Virat Kohli’s running between the wickets greatly contributes to his batting prowess.

“I think the other thing that stands out with Kohli is his fitness and his running between the wickets. The way he pushes himself running between the wickets, he is incredibly fit. Some of his performances are quite amazing,” Chappell added.

Virat Kohli last played cricket during India’s tour of New Zealand earlier this year. With all the uncertainty surrounding sporting activities, it is unclear when the world will get to watch Virat Kohli bat again.