ODI World Cup 2023: Ian Bishop compares Virat Kohli to LeBron James, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi
Rohit Sharma-led India will take on Kusal Mendis’ Sri Lanka at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on November 2
New Delhi: Virat Kohli is hailed as one of the greatest cricketers of all time. Former West Indies cricketer Ian Bishop compared the star batsman to LeBron James, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi ahead of the India-Sri Lanka match at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on November 2.
“What LeBron James is to basketball, what Ronaldo and Messi are to football, Virat Kohli is to cricket. Virat has a global fan following,” said Ian Bishop on Star Sports.
India top the points table with a six-match unbeaten run and need to win at least one of the remaining three matches to secure a place in the semi-finals of the 2023 ICC Men’s ODI World Cup.
In light of the permutations and combinations, as the World Cup reaches home with fourteen matches to play, Rohit Sharma’s team will get the first chance to secure the last four places on Thursday when they play Sri Lanka at the Waknhede Stadium . in Mumbai. After this match, India will take on second-placed South Africa on November 5 and the Netherlands on November 12.
India are currently at the top of the points table with 12 points from six wins, their opponents Sri Lanka, on the other hand, are in seventh place with two wins and four losses.
Sri Lanka also has some chances to reach the last four stages. Their best chance is to win all three remaining matches and hope that New Zealand, Australia or other teams can finish on 10 points. They also need to significantly improve their Net Run Rate to increase their chances of reaching the semi-finals. It is difficult but achievable if luck favors them.
But Sri Lanka have not had much luck in this tournament as they have lost several key players including skipper Dasun Shanaka, Lahiru Kumara and Matheesha Pathirana all to injuries. They have failed to impose themselves in both the batting and bowling departments and the defeat to Afghanistan in Pune has really hurt their chances.
India too have been plagued by injury problems, with key all-rounder Hardik Pandya still a doubt and likely to miss Thursday’s match with Sri Lanka and the subsequent match against South Africa in Calcutta. But his replacement Mohammad Shami has claimed nine wickets in the two matches he has played so far.
The hosts have had a great campaign in the World Cup, probably their best ever in the history of the event, winning five games in the chase and one by defending a small total against England. Their comfortable run, based on comprehensive victories, has been set up by their bowling unit which has worked with clockwork precision.