Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has said that Virat Kohli will remain one of the greatest Test players ever from India, and even though his numbers dropped over the past few years in the longest format, the way he re-energised Indian cricket would be something that he would be remembered for as well.
While announcing India’s 18-member team that will be led by new skipper Shubman Gill, Ajit Agarkar revealed that Kohli had contacted the selectors in the initial stages of IPL 2025 to inform them about leaving Tests.
The World Test Championship final, beginning June 11, will be the first such summit clash without India after they were whitewashed 0-3 at home by New Zealand and then lost 1-3 to Australia at the turn of the year, bringing an end to Kohli’s career.
“Well, he’s got to be right up there as far as the all-time greats are concerned. I’m not sure if the question’s about Indian players only, but if it is, then he’s right at the top there,” Ponting said while speaking on the latest episode of ICC Review.
“And I guess if you look back, if you’re comparing him to the all-time great Test players, the last couple of years, his numbers have probably dropped off a little bit,” Ponting said.
“He averaged well over 50 for a lot of his career. Then the last three or four years, those numbers have dropped down to, I don’t know what it is now, 46 or 47 Test average, I think 30 Test hundreds,” Ponting added.
The former Australia captain said that despite the stark difference in his current average and his past form, which saw him score truckloads of runs, Kohli will undoubtedly be remembered as one of the greats of Tests.
Ponting also acknowledged that Indian cricketers carry an immense amount of pressure while representing the country, way more than Australians or Englishmen, and the way Kohli handled it also adds to his greatness.
