A fiery yorker by Akhtar on Virat Kohli before Champions Trophy: How to wake up the under-fire India star

Not only Rohit Sharma, but also Virat Kohli's form has left selectors and critics concerned. Despite scoring a century in Perth against Australia, Kohli has faced criticism for his poor run of form since June across formats, causing doubts about his future. With the Champions Trophy approaching, experts are anxious about when or if Kohli will regain his form. In a cheeky suggestion, Pakistan legend Shoaib Akhtar came up with a solution to "wake him up."

Kohli scored just 382 runs in 10 Test matches he played since September, at just 22.47, with a century and fifty to his name, thus recording his worst-ever performance in a calendar year since his debut. In T20Is, where he only played in the World Cup, the 36-year-old, who sparked hopes of a record-breaking show after bagging the Orange Cap in IPL 2024 for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, managed just 151 runs at a strike rate of 112.68 with a solitary fifty.

With the England ODI series up next, followed by the Champions Trophy, which could be his final assignment in the format for India, experts remain worried about his form with the former India captain being a certainty in the sides despite his recent performances. However, Akhtar, in conversation with India Today, came up with a cheeky solution as he recalled the iconic Melbourne innings in the 2022 T20 World Cup against Pakistan.

"If you want to wake up Virat Kohli, just tell him you have a match against Pakistan. Look at that innings he played in Melbourne. Hopefully, Babar Azam will do that for Pakistan. Unfortunately, Saim Ayub is injured. I was looking forward to his partnership with Fakhar Zaman. It would have been a destructive opening pair," he said.

'Want Pakistan to win'

It will be on February 23 in Dubai when India will play Pakistan in the Champions Trophy. It was the same venue where Pakistan had ended their losing streak in World Cups against India with an emphatic 10-wicket win in the 2021 T20 World Cup and Akhtar hopes the Mohammad Rizwan-led side can emulate the same.

"India and Pakistan are both favourites. I expect a good contest and a high-scoring game. It's time for both teams to wake up, but I hope Pakistan win. They are the hosts, and they need to win and return home then. But India is a strong side. Bumrah is a one-man army," he added.

When further asked on giving Bumrah a nickname, the Rawalpindi Express, left the reporter gobsmacked as he labelled the India fast bowler as "legend."

"The best thing I like about Bumrah is that he is an honest fast bowler. He got his back injured but did not let India down," he added.

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