“Virat Kohli white ball me ek betaaj badshah hai” - Former India cricketer backs under-fire batter ahead of ICC 2025 Champions Trophy

Former India cricketer Mohammad Kaif has backed under-fire Virat Kohli ahead of the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy. The cricketer-turned-commentator pointed out that with 50 tons and 13906 runs in ODIs, Kohli's record speaks for itself.

The 44-year-old spoke about the relevance of Kohli in Dubai, where he smashed a century in his last outing against Afghanistan in 2022. He concluded that Kohli is a king in white-ball cricket.

The positive remarks came after Kohli failed to deliver with the bat in his last 10 Tests, managing 382 runs in 19 innings at an average of 22.47. The 36-year-old also returned with scores of 14, 24, and 20 in the three-match ODI series in Sri Lanka in 2024, when India lost by a 0-2 margin. He kept getting out by nicking outside off stump deliveries throughout the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Kaif said on his YouTube channel:

"2:51- Virat Kohli never accepts defeat and always makes a comeback. Don’t write him off in white ball cricket, the picture is far from over because he has 50 ODI tons to his name and nearly 13,000 runs in ODIs. So, forget what happened in Tests."

"He plays differently in white ball. The last time Virat Kohli played in Dubai, he scored an unbeaten 122 off 61 balls against Afghanistan and smashed six sixes in his innings. His form was excellent and he loves playing in Dubai so, I expect him to do well with the bat in the Champions Trophy. If he scores well in the opening game, then he will keep scoring runs, I can take that guarantee. Virat Kohli white ball me ek betaaj badshah hai (Virat Kohli is an uncrowned king in white ball cricket). The era has not ended, it will continue," he added.

"Gill got a cramp and he left the ground but" - Mohammad Kaif lauds Virat Kohli's fitness

Mohammad Kaif further shared an example of why Virat Kohli is rated amongst the fittest athletes in the world. He shared how Kohli beat the challenging conditions, scoring a century against New Zealand in the 2023 ODI World Cup before fielding the entire innings. Kaif said in the same video:

"00:48 – Virat Kohli against New Zealand, semifinal match of the World Cup. It was Wankhede Stadium and timing was around 2.30 pm. When his batting came, there was no wind (breeze), it was too hot and T-shirts were soaked in sweat. He comes out to bat, scored 100. Shubman Gill was in front of him, who was 23-years-old and Kohli was 34-years-old. He scored his 100 by running between the wickets. Gill got a cramp and he left the ground but Kohli kept batting, he also fielded. He took slip catches, and completed fielding full innings."

"The conditions were sunny, with no breeze, testing conditions in terms of fitness but he scored 100. India won that match. In the final, he scored 50 against Australia in the final but the team lost. He won Player of the Series but he wasn’t feeling good. He said, ‘This trophy is not important to me, if I had scored 100 I would have been a champion.’ Six months later, he went for the T20 World Cup, hit 76 in the final, and received two trophies – Player of the Match and the World Cup title," he added.

Kohli amassed 765 runs in 11 matches at an average of 95.62 at 2023 World Cup. He smashed three tons and six half-centuries.