Shoaib Malik Reacts To Criticism For ‘Teaching Kohli To Bat’ (image-instgram/realshoibmalik)
Indian former captain Virat Kohli’s fan base is something one has to keep in mind before making any comment on the cricketer. If anyone tries to point out the weakness or vulnerability of Kohli, they have to be prepared to face the public reaction.
A very recent incident took place in which a leading Hindi newspaper was burnt by Kohli fans for publishing a controversial article about the Indian cricketer.
Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik is now in the middle of such a storm after discussing Kohli’s performance during a panel discussion on the show ‘The Pavilion’ on A Sports. In the discussion Malik took the wrong road and commented on how Kohli struggles against spin. Malik who was just analysing the game of star player may not have thought about the aftermath of his remark.
The internet overflowed with reactions and never-ending trolls. Alongside Shoaib, Wasim Akram and Misbah-ul-Haq also commented on Kohli’s occasional struggle against spinners.
Malik might have never thought about the awaiting backlash from Kohli’s legion of fans. The intensity of his comment was evident when during a post-match show, when the topic once again was bought up by a question: “Shoaib Malik thank you for teaching Virat Kohli how to bat and then suggested that he should also teach acting to legendry actor Amitah Bachchan”. Malik initially reacted with a slight laughter before breaking his silence on the episode.
“In cricket, every batter, no matter how successful, has a weakness. I want to clarify that my point was simple. When a batter’s feet move across, they encounter difficulties against spin. There are numerous examples of great players facing similar challenges, and you can inquire with anyone for confirmation,” Malik said.
He then defended his comment by saying that he never said that Kohli doesn’t know how to play.
“I want to clarify that I never claimed he doesn’t know how to play. I just mentioned that he might feel a bit uncomfortable. That’s it. If you had watched the entire show, you would have noticed that I always praise him. He is undoubtedly one of the greats,” he added.
