“He’s also smashed me” – Star England spinner on Virat Kohli being called his ‘bunny’

Virat Kohli training session (Source: Paul Kane/Getty Images)

While Adil Rashid has dismissed Virat Kohli on several occasions during their face-offs in international cricket, the England spinner refused to consider the former India captain as his “bunny”. Rashid recalled that Kohli has also registered fifties and centuries against him and smashed him all over the park.

The England leg-spinner dismissed Kohli on four occasions in Tests, five times in ODIs, and twice in T20Is. In total, Rashid has got the better of the Delhi batter in 11 instances.

“Let’s not think of Bunny. It’s not like every time I’ll bowl to him I’ll get him out. I’ve got him out a few times. But he’s also smashed me. That is part and parcel. Sometimes when you play a lot against someone and get them out it becomes a thing. At the same time, he has scored hundreds and fifties and smashed me all over. It’s not guaranteed that he’s his bunny. It doesn’t work like that,” Rashid said on the ‘Beard Before Wicket’ podcast.

In Tests, Kohli has scored 289 runs against Rashid. The right-handed batter has an average of 72.2 and a strike rate of 62.4. Meanwhile, in ODI cricket, Kohli has aggregated 130 runs at an average of 22.4 and a strike rate of 86.2. In T20Is, Rashid has given away 72 runs while bowling to the 36-year-old.

I feel like Kohli was incredibly hard to get out: Kagiso Rabada

South African speedster Kagiso Rabada was also present on the same episode. He shared his experiences of bowling to Kohli. The right-arm seamer said that getting Kohli’s wicket has always been very challenging for him.

“I feel like Kohli was incredibly hard to get out. He was extremely stingy with his wicket. He would just bat and bat. If you get him out, you know you’ve earned it. You’ve earned it in a battle. He was very hard to get out,” Rabada said.

Kohli is expected to return to international cricket during India’s white-ball tour of Australia, starting next month. He has not played for the Men in Blue since the Champions Trophy final in March, where India defeated New Zealand in the final.

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