"If you're out of form, it’s best to let go of those things" a South African cricket legend advises Virat Kohli after his struggles in the BGT 2024-25

Kohli had a tough time in Australia, scoring only 190 runs in five Test matches, with an average of less than 24. With his average dropping below 31 in 39 Test matches since 2020. Due to Kohli not being in top, India faced a 1-3 series defeat and lost the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for the first time since the 2014-15 series.

AB de Villiers, a former cricketer from South Africa, gave Kohli some advice to assist him. De Villiers thinks Kohli should try something different and surprising by not getting into arguments with the other team or the fans when times are hard. De Villiers believes this might help Kohli do well again.

Ab De Villiers said - "The skill, experience and Greatness of the guy are not an issue. It's about the refocus after every single ball. Maybe sometimes he gets too involved". (On Virat Kohli & his form). pic.twitter.com/KG5EM8fNip

— Tanuj Singh (@ImTanujSingh) January 5, 2025

During a live show, De Villiers discussed Virat Kohli's recent struggles, sharing his thoughts on his X handle, as reported by India Today:

"You have to turn your device off and then on again each time. It takes a real strong personality, a deep desire, and endless hours of work to succeed but I've noticed something about Virat - he dives too deep into the competition sometimes. Even though it's what makes him amazing, it can trip him up too. During the series, it was obvious he was having these one on one showdowns with players and even the audience ended up bothering him. Virat really shines when he's in battle mode but letting go of those side issues might be smarter when you're not at your best".

"You must just focus on the ball, not the bowler, and treat every pitch like it's fresh. As a hitter, it primarily bears on to shaking off the last ball and handling each pitch on its own but I guess Virat sometimes misses that part because his drive to battle is extremely intense. He really wants to show India he's ready to help them, always trying to show he can do good things".

Since the decade, Virat Kohli has only scored three hundreds in Test matches, making people worry if he should still be in India's Test team. With six losses out of the last six Test matches, including a total defeat in three games at home against New Zealand, his batting hasn't been good enough lately. This has played a role in India's poor performance.

"Every batter has some kind of weakness" said AB de Villiers about Virat Kohli:

AB de Villiers believed Virat Kohli could overcome his difficulties with balls outside the off stump, which was a major problem for him when facing fast bowlers, in the series against Australia. In eight out of his nine innings, Kohli got out because he kept hitting balls that were pitched outside the off-stump from the Australian fast bowlers.

"Every batter in the world has a type of weakness, AB de Villiers discussing Virat Kohli's battle with the ball outside off stump. Villiers admitted that the straight ball hitting his pads was the problem for him. Villiers continued, sharing his personal experience, even when I was at the peak of my career, the best form of my life, I had to rely on all the experience I had just to make runs. To wrap up his thoughts, he confidently added, of course he can overcome it, noting the Kohli."

Virat Kohli entered the 2024-25 series in Australia with a Test average exceeding 50, but following the recently concluded tour, his average has fallen to below 47.

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