Pakistan’s Shadab says he will pray for Kohli’s century

Pakistan leg spinner Shadab Khan said that he will be praying for former India skipper Virat Kohli to regain his form and even score a century, albeit not against Pakistan, in the Asia Cup. 

"I pray that he returns to how he was," Shadab said at the pre-match press conference ahead of the blockbuster clash between Pakistan and India on August 28, through which both the cricketing powerhouses will commence their Asia Cup campaign. 

"He is performing good even now, but the standards that he has set.. they make it feel as if he is out of form. I personally wish that he scores a century; not against us, but against some team else in this tournament," Shadab added. 

Kohli has been experiencing a form slump for a while now. The cricketer, for whom getting to the three-digit score was almost a regular occurrence, has not scored a ton in any format since his 136-run knock against Bangladesh in November 2019 in a Test in Kolkata. 

Kohli's inclusion in India's Asia Cup squad was questioned by a number of former cricketers, who also believe that the cricketer does not instill fear among oppositions anymore.

In that regard, Shadab said: "They (the former cricketers) don't play anymore, that's why they think that he doesn't instil fear. He (Kohli) is a legend of the game, he has performed quite a lot. Whenever he comes, you are a bit scared because he is a big player. We don't want him to play a long innings against us."