Team India head coach Rahul Dravid brushed aside the tittle-tattle about Virat Kohli avoiding pressers and all the hullabaloo surrounding him in the ongoing South Africa tour.
Normally captains address the press on the eve of the Test matches but this time coach Rahul was seen in the pre-match press conference on Sunday (January 2) where everyone was expecting India's Test captain appearance.
Asked why Kohli has not addressed the media so far in the tour, Dravid said, "There is no specific reason for that. I don't decide this but I am told he will be speaking on eve of his 100th Test. Then you can ask all the questions on his 100th Test."
Kohli's 100th Test would be the third match against South Africa in Cape Town from January 11.
He kicked up a storm before the tour by stating that he was never asked to reconsider leaving T20 captaincy as asserted by BCCI President Sourav Ganguly. His statement was recently met with a rebuttal from chief selector Chetan Sharma who said that Kohli was requested to hold his decision by everyone in the Board at least till the end of the T20 World Cup.
Another issue has been his batting form. India lead the ongoing series 1-0 but Kohli's inability to convert starts over the last two years and his play outside the off stump has remained the talking point.
"...the way he's committed to his own preparation, his own practice. And also just the way he's connected with the group over the last two weeks on and off the field. He has truly been a fantastic leader.
"So, that's really helped in creating a really good space leading into the first Test match. A lot of that was led by Virat and his leadership really came to the fore. It's been a pleasure to work with someone like him," said Dravid.
Kohli ended the year 2021 without scoring a century in international cricket as he departed for 18 in the second innings of the first Test against South Africa on Wednesday.
In 2020 also Kohli had failed to reach the triple-figure mark. The Indian skipper had last scored a ton in the day-night Test against Bangladesh at Eden Gardens in 2019.
The former India captain sees Kohli scoring hundreds very soon, something he has not done in over two years.
“Even personally, he's in a really good space and even though he sort of batted well and couldn't convert those starts, I feel there's going to be really good scores coming in from someone like him,” the former India captain said.
"Just observing him around the group, how relaxed, how calm he has been and how he's preparing and how switched on he is, it (big score) might not happen in the next game. I would really hope it happens in the next game.
"But I do feel with someone like him we're going to see really big scores," Dravid added.
