Former team India’s opener, Navjot Singh Sidhu, has named Virat Kohli the best batsman of all time, ahead of the greats like Sehwag, Tendulkar,Dhoni , Gavaskar, and even Viv Richards.
In his interaction with India today, Sidhu was asked if Virat Kohli should bat at number three for his franchise, keeping the World Cup in mind. To which the former opener replied that Kohli should not do it because it’s not what the team demands from him.
Navjot Singh Sidhu said, “I don’t think so. It’s what the team demands. You could be the greatest player in the world, which he is. But if your team is not winning, especially if it hasn’t held the trophy once, then it’s a blot that you would want to erase. It’s not detrimental to him in any way, because he has given his best, and you could see it.”
Sidhu further went on to say, “I have rated him as the best Indian batter ever.
There are eras where I would put up my transistor and listen to Sunil Gavaskar bat against the West Indies; those are the 1970s. The great West Indies fast bowlers, bunking school and just going out one period and listening to how he was batting without a helmet—that was his era. He dominated for almost 15–20 years. Then came Tendulkar, another era. Then came Dhoni, and then came Virat. If you look at four, I would rate him as the best because he has adapted to all three formats.”
When speaking about Kohli being the best ever batter, Sidhu believes that it is his fitness and longevity that made him the greatest batsman of the era.
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Siddhu said, “In the same way, his technical ability is the fittest of all of them. If you look at all four, he would be the fittest. Tendulkar had problems in the latter stages of his career. Dhoni, he is fit. Virat is super fit. That holds him in good stead. It elevates him to a level, a few notches higher, that others have not been able to achieve. The longevity factor gives him a plus. The adaptability factor is Sone Pe Suhaaga.”
Virat Kohli will be seen in action in RCB’s first clash against the Chennai Super Kings on March 22.
