Anil Kumble, the former captain and head coach of India, thinks Virat Kohli should chill a bit as he aims to score runs. In India's opening match of the ICC Men's Champions Trophy 2025 against Bangladesh in Dubai, Kohli struggled, managing only 22 runs before getting out to leg-spin from Rishad Hossain.

Since the 2023 ODI World Cup, Kohli has only racked up 137 runs over six innings. He seemed to be off his game on Thursday in Dubai, looking far from his usual self, and his innings ended prematurely thanks to the Bangladesh spinner.

Kumble believes Kohli is putting too much pressure on himself to break out of this slump.

"Having gone through a rough patch, especially in white-ball cricket, he hasn't had a good run in a while, and I think he's trying a bit too hard," Kumble shared on ESPNcricinfo Match Day.

"You see this with players who have been around for a long time; everyone expects them to be the game-changer, and he’s the key player for the team," he added.

Kohli's most recent six times getting out to spin

In his last six ODIs, Kohli has faced only spin bowlers, with five of those matches against left-arm spinners.

Kumble suggested that Kohli should take a page from Rohit Sharma's book, who made a quick 41 runs against Bangladesh in Dubai on Thursday.

"When you're under that kind of pressure and have high expectations, it can make you overthink things and try too hard to perform. When that happens, you lose your relaxed mindset. The best innings come when you're not focused on all that noise. The best bowlers also don’t dwell on it," Kumble explained.

"I think Kohli is putting in too much effort. You can see it in how he approaches his innings. He just needs to let go of those worries. Rohit has the freedom to play his game because the batting lineup is strong and everyone is in form. Virat should aim for that same mindset," he continued.

Kumble believes Kohli is adding unnecessary pressure on himself and needs to chill out and focus on the fundamentals. He also pointed out that Kohli's struggle against spin is due to him trying too hard to score runs.

"Every player faces tough patches, but when I watch him bat, it seems like he's really stressing himself out. He should just relax and not fixate on the results. Instead, he should play freely and naturally, which is when he shines," Kumble said.

"When he's in form, he's great against spin, just looking to take singles and keep the strike moving. Right now, he's pushing too hard to score instead of just playing smart, and that's not his usual game plan," he added.

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