Karthik's honest remark on Virat Kohli's struggles vs spin during Sri Lanka series: ‘Not going to defend him, but…’

Team India endured a difficult outing in the ODI series against Sri Lanka. The side lost the series 0-2, the first against Sri Lanka in ODI bilaterals since 1997. Moreover, all three games saw Indian batters struggling significantly against spin bowling. On tricky surfaces in Colombo, the Indian batters failed in chases across the three matches, with even Virat Kohli, the side's batting stalwart, struggling to add runs.

Kohli scored 24, 14, and 20, reigniting discussions over his weakness against spin. The Indian batter looked subdued in the middle, particularly after Rohit's fiery starts. However, according to former India wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik, India were troubled significantly due to the amount of turn the track had to offer.

Rohit may have been at his aggressive best throughout the series, but Karthik stated that the pitch was difficult for all batters in the lineup. The wicketkeeper, who shared the dressing room with Kohli during his time at the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, stated that the surface in Colombo was significantly tricky during the middle-overs.

“In this series… let's admit. Be it Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma or anyone else. With a slightly semi-new ball, between overs 8-30, it's hard work. Nothing to worry about. Not too many pitches work that way, but it's been a tough pitch to play spinners. I'm not going to defend Virat Kohli here, but playing spin here is very hard,” Karthik said on Cricbuzz.

Theekshana's remark on Indian batters

In fact, Sri Lankan spinner Maheesh Theekshana had acknowledged the turn assisted the host side, while also adding that India batters are more comfortable in playing in shorter boundaries and “good wickets” back home.

“They (India) usually play on good wickets and small boundaries in India,” Theekshana had said after the series win.

“We knew playing in Premadasa, if there’s little bit turn, we can take advantage because we have good spinners,” he added.

The ODI series against Sri Lanka had marked the return of both Kohli and Rohit Sharma to the format after the World Cup.