BIRMINGHAM: Former Indian captain and head coach Rahul Dravid has backed Virat Kohli and urged the star batter to contribute with match-winning performances -whether a 50 or a 60- as Team India prepares to face England in the rescheduled final Test at Edgbaston on July 1.

Dravid, in his pre-match press conference, put his weight behind Kohli, who has not scored a century since 2019 in any format, and stated that as a head coach he only wanted the batter to make match-winning contributions.

“Obviously, the standards that he has set, people only see hundreds as a success but for me, from a coaches’ perspective, we want contributions from him — match-winning contributions, whether it is a 50 or a 60,” he said as quoted by HindustanTimes. 

“As players, you go through these phases and I don’t think you need the motivation to be very honest with you and I think in Virat’s case it is nothing to do with lack of motivation or desire,” he added

Dravid praised the 34-year-old batter for his hard work and fitness and believed he still had a long career ahead of him.

In my opinion, he is on the right side of 30 and he is an incredibly fit guy. He is one of the most hardworking guys that I have come across and his desire and hunger and the whole attitude of looking after himself,” he concluded.

It is worth mentioning here that India’s current Test skipper Rohit Sharma has been undergoing isolation after he was tested positive for Covid-19, making his availability for tomorrow’s match doubtful.

Although India has called Mayank Agarwal as batting cover but still waiting for further tests of Rohit to announce his replacement as a skipper of the Indian team.

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