New Delhi, March 29 – Former Indian cricketer Ambati Rayudu has praised Virat Kohli's consistency and suggested that the 37-year-old return to red-ball cricket after his unbeaten 69-run innings helped the defending champions, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), achieve a dominant 6-wicket victory against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in their opening match of the Indian Premier League (IPL), played at the M. Chinnaswamy stadium on Saturday.
Kohli's innings included five fours and five sixes, as he registered his 64th IPL half-century and became the first batter in IPL history to cross 4000 runs in chases. With this, RCB chased down the target of 202 runs with 26 balls to spare.
Rayudu believes that Kohli's batting in ODIs and his continued form in the biggest T20 league is quite amazing. According to the former player, Kohli still has five to six years of international cricket left in him.
"I feel his best is yet to come in the IPL. What we have seen is just a trailer. Fitness was never an issue with him. I don't think he would ever get into any trouble with his physical fitness, getting late on the ball, or slowing down on the field. The only thing that can make him take a step back is his mental state. I don't think he's anywhere closer to the end of his career. I still see quality five to six years in him," Rayudu said in a video released by ESPNcricinfo on X.
"I think he should make a comeback in Test cricket. Hopefully, as a captain. He's been the best red-ball captain that at least I have seen in Indian cricket. He should, the way he's batting, I think it's a loss for Indian cricket," he added.
India's finest Test player, Kohli, announced his retirement from red-ball cricket last year after a disappointing Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT). He concluded his career with 9230 runs in 123 matches, scoring 30 centuries and 31 half-centuries.
Virat has previously retired from the T20I format after India's 2024 T20 World Cup victory, and he now only plays ODIs for the country.