Australia and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) all-rounder Glenn Maxwell says his franchise cricket teammate and Indian batting superstar Virat Kohli is the one he played against “The most crucial player” and jokingly said that he hopes India does not select him for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup which will kick off on June 1 this year in West Indies/USA. While Maxwell praised Virat, he also said that in a cricket-mad country like India, every player should be “heated” or scrutinized. Virat’s place in T20 cricket has been controversial of late as he has a slightly conservative approach that combines timely attack with anchoring, and when batsmen bat from the first ball, he remains Use this method.

Both Virat and Maxwell are playing for RCB in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season. While Maxwell performed poorly, scoring just 32 runs in five games, Virat topped the run-scoring chart, scoring 316 runs in five games at an average of 105.33, with a strike rate of over 146 and a century and two fifty points. His best score is 113*.

“Virat Kohli is the most clutch player I have ever played against,” Maxwell said on ESPN’s “Around The Wicket” show. “His innings against us in Mohali during the 2016 T20 World Cup is still the most crucial player I have ever seen. Good innings “against me. His awareness of what it takes to win games is amazing. I hope India doesn’t select him because it would be great not to play against him. “

Maxwell said the debate over Virat’s place in the T20s was not surprising and although the Indian team has some phenomenal players, all should be scrutinized as India is a tough team to break into.

“It’s not surprising because there are 1.5 billion people in this country and I think half of them are incredible cricketers (laughs). It’s a tough team to get into. You look at the top T20 players in India , they all participated in this tournament. They are extraordinary players and every player should be passionate,” Maxwell said.

Virat is the highest run-getter in T20I cricket. In 117 games, he scored 4,037 runs at an average of 51.75 with a strike rate of over 138, hitting 1:50 and 37 fifties in 109 innings. His best score is 122*.

Additionally, Virat is the most decorated batsman and leading run scorer in the history of ICC T20 World Cup. In 27 T20 World Cup matches, Virat has scored 1141 runs at an average of 81.50, a strike rate of 131.30 and 14 half-centuries in 25 innings. His best score is 89*. He was also the ‘Man of the Tournament’ in 2014 (319 runs in six games, four 50s, an average of 106.33) and 2016 (273 runs in five games, three 50s, an average of 136.5), among which India The team won the championship as runners-up and semi-finalists respectively. In 2014, he became the run-scoring leader. In the nine innings of the match, Virat has averaged 518 as he was dismissed just once. Of those nine innings, seven were fifties.

In the 2022 Australian edition of the tournament, Virat emerged as the run-scoring leader with 296 runs in six games at an average of 98.66 and a strike rate of 136.40, including four 50-run games. His knock of 82* against Pakistan in a grueling 160-run chase in Melbourne is also considered one of the best ever in T20Is.