Pietersen warns Kohli becoming a dad only adds extra pressure
Kevin Pietersen tells Virat Kohli that recently becoming a dad only adds extra pressure, as India’s captain returns to the team for England series after missing his side’s superb win in Australia
- England are in India for a much-anticipated four-Test series starting on Friday
- India captain Virat Kohli missed much of their recent series win in Australia
- Kohli flew home after the first Test for the birth of his daughter Vamika
- He is set to return to the side but has been warned being a dad is extra pressure
- Kevin Pietersen said ‘from experience, it can be a difficult moment’
Kevin Pietersen has cautioned Virat Kohli that becoming a father ‘can be a difficult moment in your career’ as the India captain prepares to take on England.
The much-anticipated four-Test series gets underway in Chennai this Friday and Kohli will return to the India team after missing the final three matches of their victorious tour of Australia to be at the birth of daughter Vamika.
Former England star Pietersen has warned the added responsibility of being a dad can add pressure but knows Kohli will want to ‘go big’ during the series.
India captain Virat Kohli and his wife Anushka Sharma welcomed baby Vamika into the world
Star batsman Kohli is set to return to the India team for the upcoming series with England
‘From an Indian perspective, they are in such a good place at the moment that it’s hard to pick out too many areas of weakness,’ Pietersen said in his Betway blog.
‘The big talking point throughout this series is going to be Virat Kohli coming back into the side as captain.
‘People have wondered about him returning as skipper, considering that he now has the added responsibility of being a dad.
‘I know from experience that becoming a father can be a difficult moment in your career. Previously, you are able simply to focus on batting and captaincy, whereas there is now a fair amount more going on in your life.
‘Ajinkya Rahane was outstanding when he stood in as captain in Australia, too – he was so calm, patient and decisive.
Former England batsman Kevin Pietersen has warned Kohli that fatherhood adds pressure
Ajinkya Rahane was an outstanding captain for India as they won their series in Australia
‘But Kohli will want to be captain, and to lead from the front. He’s a superstar, unbelievable, and – with a point to prove, after his side won a big series without him – he will want to go big.’
Kohli captained India for the opening Test against Australia in Adelaide in mid-December but saw his team skittled for just 36 on their way to an eight-wicket defeat.
The 32-year-old then flew back to India as his wife, the Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma, gave birth to a baby girl on January 11.
Meanwhile, India staged a stunning recovery to overcome numerous injury setbacks and the psychological strains of being in a Covid-19 bubble to win the series 2-1.
They won the second Test by eight wickets in Melbourne and then dug in to draw the third in Sydney. India then pulled off one of the most sensational victories ever seen in Test cricket in Brisbane, chasing down their victory target of 328 with three wickets remaining.
Kohli flew back to India to be at the birth after his team’s humiliating first Test loss in Adelaide
But India came back to win the series 2-1 despite countless setbacks along the way
It means they enter the England series with spirits sky-high, though the tourists did win last month’s series in Sri Lanka 2-0 as they grew acclimatised to the conditions they will face in India.
England captain Joe Root overtook Pietersen’s total of 8,181 Test runs during the Sri Lanka series and KP said Root is still performing the batting drills he taught him in 2012.
‘Root actually messaged me last week saying that he’s still doing all of the same stuff that I practised with him in 2012,’ Pietersen added. ‘He now needs to work with his opening batsmen in the same way.
‘I must say, after he passed my career Test runs tally, how brilliant it has been to watch Root evolve into one of England’s greatest-ever batsmen.
England captain Joe Root was excellent in Sri Lanka and Pietersen has backed him in India
‘It’s amazing to have been there at the start of his international career, and having seen the work that went into his batting then, he deserves all of the accolades that he is earning now.
‘His performance is going to be key to England’s chances here and, if he goes as well as I expect, then I have a quiet confidence that England can score the runs they will need.’
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