A fresh wave of chatter bubbles up around Sanjay Manjrekar, ex-India player turned blunt TV voice. His recent take on Virat Kohli skipping Tests but staying in ODIs stirred things again. While Virat smacked runs in a one-day game, old quotes reappeared online.
That pulled a quick reply from his brother, Vikat Kohli, who wasn’t holding back.
Famous for speaking his mind, Manjrekar lately raised doubts about Kohli stepping away from Tests – a form many see as most demanding – yet sticking with ODIs, which he called less challenging. Just when Kohli started hitting runs again in fifty-over games, those words sparked fresh talk on what makes one format harder than another and why players pick certain ones.
Fans thought they saw the old Kohli again when he scored 93 under clear skies on Sunday, just seven runs short of another milestone. His smooth batting in the opening match versus New Zealand hushed some doubters – for now. Online chatter lit up once more as clips of Manjrekar’s past remarks spread fast across platforms. The familiar debate crawled back into view, stirred by moments of near-perfection.
Earlier on Instagram, in a clip, Manjrekar broke down his view: today’s ODI game gives an edge to those hitting first. He pointed out how, back then, some players shied away from opening in Tests – yet jumped at the chance in ODIs. Times shift. So do roles. Backing aggression now feels natural, where caution once ruled.
“A lot of people have asked me why I keep saying ODI cricket is easy for top-order batters,” Manjrekar said. “If you go back a few years in Indian cricket, many of the long-term ODI openers were actually middle-order batters in Tests. They weren’t keen to bat in the top three in Test cricket but were desperate to do so in one-day cricket.”
Manjrekar says the way ODI games unfold naturally shields batsmen at the start. Early overs rarely see packed attacking fields, because bowling sides usually care more about limiting runs than pushing hard for breakthroughs.
“When you open in 50-over cricket or bat at No. 3, there’s no cordon of four slips and a gully. Bowlers aren’t running in with the sole intention of getting you out – they’re trying to make sure they don’t concede 10 or 15 runs an over,” he added.
Fans and analysts found themselves divided when words flew back and forth, yet the sharpest reply came not from the spotlight but from Virat Kohli’s sibling, Vikas. Right after that strong 93-run performance by Kohli, Vikas stepped onto Threads – not with praise, but with a clear message targeting Manjrekar’s take.
“Such an easy format, isn’t it… someone gave his gyaan a few days back… easier said than done,” Vikas wrote, a post that quickly gained traction among Kohli supporters.
A fresh look at the chat shows people still weigh in on today’s take toward different cricket styles. Though long-format games test patience and mastery like nothing else, one-day matches plus short sprints call for steady nerves, quick shifts in approach, when moments heat up – a space where Kohli keeps showing up, year after year, without fuss.
Still two games left in the New Zealand ODI series, so Kohli gets more chances at that hard-to-reach 85th international hundred. Even if it happens or not, talk about which format’s tougher and who picks what won’t quiet down fast – not with big voices like Kohli and Manjrekar in the mix.
Bat in hand, Kohli still says it best without words.
