Kohli and the challenge of playing just one format in modern cricket

It doesn't help that ODIs are dying and he just isn't getting enough competitive cricket under his belt

- Somshuvra Laha

There's always a first time for everything. And even though Virat Kohli getting an unprecedented consecutive ducks in one-day cricket could have been exempted from this truth of life, here we are, wondering how just might he rally from this setback.

In another world where Kohli was playing all formats and the IPL, Perth and Adelaide wouldn't have mattered. In fact, it would have been anything but a tiniest blip on the radar. But the circumstances have changed. And Kohli must find a compelling reason to persuade himself and the world to believe that India need him in the 2027 ODI World Cup.

Which is a challenging task at the outset. Picking one format has been a way of life nowadays, but Kohli as well as Rohit Sharma have picked a dying format to try and stay relevant. There aren't many one-dayers played anyway, and such are the international calendars structured these days that Kohli might have to wait till after next year's IPL to hit the peak rush of ODIs scheduled ahead of the next ODI World Cup. But what will he do till then?