Ricky Ponting: 'Virat Kohli won't stay down for too long'

In a recent interview, Ricky Ponting backed Virat Kohli to get out of his slump thanks to his professionalism. Kohli, who was voted ICC Men's ODI Cricketer of the Decade for the 2010s, has had a dip in form, leading to a two-year wait for a century. Besides a couple of half-centuries, Kohli also struggled to make runs in IPL 2022, which led to talks about a possible break from cricket for the former Indian captain. Ponting, who has the second-most international centuries tied ironically with Kohli, said that he expected Kohli to bounce back because of his work ethic and professionalism.

In a recent interview with ICC Review, Ponting said: "There was a lot of talk and conjecture around the IPL about how tired and burnt out he [Kohli] might be. That's for him to work out and assess and find ways to improve, whether it's a technical thing or a mental thing."

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"I'm sure, being the absolute professional that he is, that he'll [Kohli] work it out and work it out pretty quickly. I know from experience that you often bluff yourself as a player that you're not tired, that you're not physically or mentally tired. You always find a way to get yourself up for training; you always find a way to get yourself up for the game," added Ponting.

"It's not until you stop and have a couple of days that you realize how tired and exhausted you are. So, that might be exactly where Virat Kohli is now, but I'm pretty sure he won't stay down for too long," Ponting concluded.