Exploring The Reasons Behind Virat Kohli's ODI Series Failures Against Sri Lanka

Virat Kohli experienced an unusual slump in the recent three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka, which India lost 0-2. His average was 19.33, the lowest in seven bilateral ODI series against Sri Lanka.

All three ODIs took place at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, where Kohli has previously scored four consecutive ODI centuries. However, this time he could only manage scores of 24, 14, and 20.

Kohli's struggle with spin bowling is not a new issue. In 2021, he played three innings and got out to spin twice, with a dot ball percentage of 34.8% and a strike rate of 92.1. The following year, he played six innings and was dismissed by spinners five times, with a dot ball percentage of 44.6% and a strike rate of 79.6.

In the recent series against Sri Lanka, Kohli was dismissed LBW by spinners in all three matches. Wanindu Hasaranga trapped him in the first ODI, Jeffrey Vandersay got him in the second match, and Dunith Wellalage dismissed him in the third.

Kohli arrived in Sri Lanka just days before the ODI series began and had limited practice time. The first practice session was washed out due to rain, leaving him with only one quality net session after a month-long break.

"Virat Kohli lbw three times in three innings against spinners. I don't remember the last time it happened. He was playing the wrong line and also used up reviews each time. He wasn't quite able to impose himself in the series," Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

Impact of Limited Game Time

Kohli's lack of game time at the international level could have contributed to his struggles. He missed several key matches earlier this year and had not played much cricket in longer formats before this series.

In 2024, these were his first three matches in longer formats. In contrast, he played more games in previous years and performed better when he had more game time.

Recent Performance Trends

Except for his match-winning knock against South Africa in the T20 World Cup 2024 final, Kohli struggled throughout the tournament. The lack of quality game time at an international level might have affected his performance.

In 2023, Kohli played 24 ODI matches and scored 1377 runs at an average of 72.5. In comparison, his average was only 26.6 from 11 matches in 2022 but improved to 59.9 from 25 ODI matches in 2019.

Kohli's struggle against spin continued last year as well; he played 19 innings and got out to spin six times with a strike rate of 85.9 and a dot ball percentage of 39.7.

The intensity seemed lacking for Kohli after celebrating India's T20 World Cup win and spending time away from cricket with his family in London.

The combination of limited preparation time, lack of game time at an international level, and ongoing struggles against spin bowling contributed to Virat Kohli's rare failures in this series against Sri Lanka.