Tennis legend Novak Djokovic supports out-of-form cricket star Virat Kohli

Djokovic, the 21-time Grand Slam champion, had also endured a poor run of form for two years after winning the 2016 French Open title

By Team KT

Published: Sun 17 Jul 2022, 2:20 PM

Last updated: Sun 17 Jul 2022, 2:41 PM

Batting superstar Virat Kohli, who has received widespread support from the cricket world amid his poor form with the bat and question marks over his place in the Indian team, now has found support from tennis legend Novak Djokovic.

Kohli dominated the last decade with his batting exploits, scoring 70 international centuries. But the middle-order batsman has not been able to hit the magic three-figure mark since October, 2019, and has repeatedly been dismissed despite getting starts.

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The former Indian captain endured a poor IPL season and then produced scores of 11, 20, 1, 11 and 16 in the ongoing England series, prompting several former India players to question his place in the team.

But Pakistan captain Babar Azam sent a message of support for Kohli on social media on Friday, and Shoaib Akhtar, the legendary fast bowler, also hit back at the Indian batsman’s critics who have questioned his place in the team.

On Saturday, former England batsman Kevin Pietersen also came out in support of Kohli, saying the Indian batsman is too big a player to be dropped.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kevin Pietersen 🦏 MBE (@kevinpietersen)

“Buddy, your career has had some of the best that have played the game only wish they could have done what you have(so far). Be proud, walk tall & enjoy life. There’s way more than just the bubble of cricket out there. You’ll be back, @virat.kohli,” wrote Pietersen on Instagram.

Moments later, Djokovic reacted and liked the post from Pietersen on Kohli.

Remarkably, Djokovic, the 21-time Grand Slam champion from Serbia who recently won his seventh Wimbledon title, also endured a poor run of form for two years after winning the 2016 French Open title.

Djokovic suffered injury issues and many early exits at the Grand Slams before getting back to winning ways at the 2018 Wimbledon.

Now Indian cricket fans will be waiting to see if Kohli can make a great comeback like Djokovic, one of the greatest tennis players of all time.