Why Virat is Virat Kohli 1.0 and not Sachin Tendulkar 2.0

Let me be honest here, Virat Kohli has been the talk of the town after his scintillating and almost zen-like composure for scripting one of the greatest modern day chases (and quite possibly one of all time best too).

The true mark of a champion is how he performs under pressure when the chips are down and Virat Kohli has shown the world that he has nerves of Adamantium – His breathtaking 82 off 51 was a sheer joy to watch. After Laxman, this is the first time I can feel poetry in the stroke play of any batsman.

As Harsha Bhogle mentioned the other day

“Virat Kohli is just finishing matches for fun here. He likes having fierce run-chases for desserts”

Kohli’s stay at the crease in the virtual quarterfinal was one of pure class with a stamp of authority. The cover drives were picture perfect and the ruthless precision of the boundaries at the death was the icing on the cake.

I can barely call any of his shots as slogs. He may well be seen as brash in his personal life and with his on-field antics but his batting has been brilliant to say the least. By his own admission he has never been the big six hitter or the one to try the unconventional shots. Kohli’s stroke play is reminiscent of the stroke play of a bygone era especially this – bend one knee and then caress the ball for a cover drive.

We Indians are a cricket-mad country. Cricketers are our equivalents of DC/Marvel Heroes. So much so that some of them have been God like statues and have had roads, buildings named after them. I have always said that Cricket is much more than a religion in India, simply because religion(s) divides but Cricket only unites us. Cricket is hands down the greatest bonding factor for us.

So in the wake of Kohli’s recent heroics and given the emotional mindset of the Indian fans, there have been loads of comments/memes going about the rounds of social media/news channels hailing Kohli as the God of Indian Cricket, rating him ahead of the likes of Tendulkar, Gavaskar, Dravid.

Some say he is the best batsman India has ever had others say that he is Tendulkar 2.0

This is where I feel one needs to draw a line. For me the greatest joy of watching sports especially Team sport is to see the character of each player being revealed under tough conditions. Given a particular situation, each player has his/her own mantra to cope up with it. This is what makes the game worth watching. The individuality of the each player should be respected and admired.

It is good to have idols and there is nothing wrong in copying their style. Remember, we are a generation who grew up perfecting Sachin’s straight on drive, Dravid’s square cut and Ganguly’s off side play.

But it is high time we realize that they were one of a kind and it is for the greater good of the game that they remain one of a kind. I would hate to see another Tendulkar or Dravid batting for India because I look forward to something different, something new every time.

Sure it may not be as good as its predecessors but that is the nature of sports – to continuously evolve for the better.

Kohli and Sachin have played in almost different eras and have been champion players for India. The comparison of players from different eras is never really a true one. An argument can be made here that Sachin played in an era of better fast bowlers than Kohli’s but that is not the general point being made here.

Each era will have its own set of brilliant players. If I owe my childhood to Sachin then Kohli is the player synonymous with my youth. Both are my favourites but more importantly, both of them are very different players and I respect that.

It is high time we let Virat Kohli be the First and Only Virat Kohli and stop all this hoopla of comparing him with the likes of Sachin and company.