While Virat Kohli did not have a particularly great time against England in July, former India cricketer and pundit Sanjay Manjrekar has come out praising him for adopting a new batting approach. Kohli continued his slump against England in July, however, looked more fearless than he had looked in the earlier part of the year.

Since then, Kohli has been rested for the tour of West Indies and Zimbabwe but has been selected for the Asia Cup 2022, which is set to be organised in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

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“They (India) should celebrate because class is back. Virat Kohli has had some first-hand experience of this new approach of India in T20 cricket in England,” Manjrekar told Sports 18.

“So he has embraced that, not with great success, but he has embraced that. You have got to give credit to Virat Kohli,” the pundit added.

Kohli will be seen in action in the Asia Cup 2022 with Indian vice-captain KL Rahul in the lineup. Manjrekar feels the Indian fans should rejoice considering the trio of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul are finally together to head the country’s batting lineup against other top countries. He also had some kind words for the former Indian captain on his slightly changed batting approach against England in July.

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“He (Kohli) didn’t care about whether he was getting runs or whether he was getting out because he desperately needed runs in England and he is looking for international runs but he still sort of backed up the Indian team’s new philosophy,” Manjrekar explained.

“He was trying to hit boundaries from ball number one,” the 57-year-old pointed out.

However, despite trying to score runs and break his slump, Kohli was unable to register any half-century against the English bowling. While he began impressively in a few innings, he was also dismissed for a duck against England, which resulted in many fans and pundits calling for his exclusion from the squad in the upcoming Asia Cup 2022 and T20 World Cup later this year.

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However, several greats like Ricky Ponting have come out in support of Kohli in recent months and urged the BCCI selectors to be patient. India captain Rohit Sharma has also offered Kohli protection, questioning pundits who have been raising their voices for the exclusion of Kohli from the squad.

Following his selection for India’s Asia Cup 2022 squad earlier this week, Virat Kohli has now begun training for the continental tournament on Thursday, August 11.