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Stats: Kohli the walking wicket for Anderson

By Rajneesh Gupta
August 10, 2014

Virat Kohli is going through perhaps the worst phase of his international career. India’s batting sensation looked on top of the world before he landed in England after which things took a turn for the worse.

And one man, who has caused Kohli the maximum pain, is England pace bowler James Anderson.

- Wretched form in England exposes India's batting woes

Kohli has literally become a walking wicket for Anderson in the ongoing Test series, falling to the pacer four times out of his six innings.

- 'India focussed on Anderson, took their eye off the cricket'

Anderson seems to have identified a chink in Kohli’s technique especially his weakness outside the off-stump, having scalped him caught behind the wickets on all the four occasions he has dismissed him in this series.

How Anderson has dismissed Kohli in Tests:

Venue

Month & Year

How out

Runs

vs Anderson

Kolkata

Dec 2012

Caught at second slip

6 (24)

0,0,1,0,0,4,W

Lord’s

Jul 2014

Caught behind

25 (34)

0,0,W

Southampton

Jul 2014

Caught at first slip

39 (75)

0,0,1,0,0,0,0,0,W

Manchester

Aug 2014

Caught at first slip

0 (2)

0,W

Manchester

Aug 2014

Caught at second slip

7 (11)

0,4,1,0,0,0,W

Overall, Anderson has snapped up Kohli five times, while conceding just 30 runs in 111 deliveries out of which 92 were dot balls.

Kohli's record against Anderson in Tests:

Balls

111

Dots

92

1s

6

2s

1

3s

2

4s

4

6s

0

Runs

30

Dismissals

5

Avg

6.00

SR

27.02

After the retirement of the senior players in the last few years, Kohli has become one of India's most dependable players having scored runs across all formats.

But his only problem area has been scoring runs away from home in Test cricket, having made 970 runs in 15 Tests at an average of 34 as compared to 859 runs in 13 matches at home at an average of 50.

Kohli's record in Tests (Home and away):

 

Mts

Inns

Runs

Avg

100s

50s

at home

13

20

859

50.53

3

6

abroad

15

29

970

34.64

3

3

TOTAL

28

49

1829

40.64

6

9

The England series has been proved to be one of the low points of Kohli’s career. He has managed just 108 runs in eight innings at an average of 13 with a highest of 39.

With India trailing 1-2 with just one match to go, India need Kohli more than ever to come out of his bad patch and lead the team to a series-levelling victory in the fifth and final match at the Oval.

As former England captain Michael Vaughan rightly noted: "It is not easy being touted as the next Sachin Tendulkar. Clearly for him to become a world-renowned player he has to score more runs overseas, but I have been amazed at how fragile he looks going to the crease."

Image: James Anderson (left) celebrates after taking the wicket of Virat Kohli

Photograph: Stu Forster/Getty Images

Rajneesh Gupta

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