Kohli's indirect reply to critics before Asia Cup, says 'can't run this far in career without abilities'

Virat Kohli is all set to return to action in the upcoming Asia Cup 2022, which gets underway on August 27 in UAE. The Men in Blue will kick-off their campaign against Babar Azam's Pakistan, which will take place a day later in Dubai. Kohli, who is making a return to competitive cricketer after a break of over a month, will look to muster some runs, which has gone dry as seen in India's tour in England.

In the six innings that Kohli played across all formats in England, the talismanic batter failed to notch a single half-century, with 20, which he scored in the rescheduled Test in Edgbaston, being his highest score of the tour.

Kohli now looks to leave the past chapter behind and has also been working hard behind the scenes to get back in the groove. A video of Kohli training ahead of the tournament had gone viral on social media earlier this month.

The former India captain acknowledged the mistakes he made in England, stating the dismissals had a similar pattern and he has worked hard enough to rectify it. "What happened in England was a pattern, so something that I could work on, something that I had to kind of overcome. Right now there is nothing that you can point out saying that the problem is happening here. So, that for me is actually an easier thing to process because I know that I'm batting well. And at times when I start feeling that the rhythm is back then I know that I'm batting well.

"So, that for me is not an issue, which wasn't the case in England; I didn't feel like I was batting well at all. So, I had to work hard on one thing that could be exposed again and again which I overcame; right now this is not the case," he said while speaking on Star Sports show Game Plan.

Kohli has faced massive criticism by experts and fans and the right-handed batter also had a message for them. "I know where my game stands and you cannot run this far in your international career without having the ability to counter situations and counter conditions and counter different kinds of bowling.

So, this for me is an easier phase to process, but I don't want to put this phase behind me. I want to learn from it and I want to understand what are the core values that I have as a sportsperson and as a human being. As long as I'm ticking those boxes, I know there are ups and downs, and when I come out of this phase, I know how consistent I can be. My experiences are sacred to me. Whatever I have experienced in this phase or in the past, as well one thing that I can vouch for, is that I have never valued myself more as a person," the former Indian skipper signed off.