'Virat Kohli can't take break from India matches'- Sunil Gavaskar

Sunil Gavaskar's remarks came during the mid-innings break of the match between the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) after Kohli got out for a third golden duck of this season at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The RCB opener flicked SRH's left-arm spinner Jagadeesha Suchith's first ball of the innings straight to Kane Williamson, positioned at mid-wicket.

The cricketer-turned commentator opined that playing for India should be Kohli's top priority, and he should not miss any matches for his country as staying away from the game won't help Kohli to rediscover his form with the bat.

"As long as the break doesn't mean he is missing India matches. India matches should be the No. 1 priority. It's as simple as that," Sunil Gavaskar said while being on-air for Star Sports on Sunday.

"I think the thing is that if you don't play, how do you get your form back? Sitting in the change room, it will not get your form back. So the more you play, the more chances you get your form back," Gavaskar added.

"You ask all over India; you want everybody in India who follows the game will say, 'we want the form for India'. Right? So you can't take a break for an India game. You want Kohli to start scoring runs for India. All of us want that," Gavaskar stated.

The 72-year-old insisted that Kohli shouldn't have taken a break before the T20I series against Sri Lanka as he was batting well in the series before that against the West Indies. Kohli was rested for the final T20I against the West Indies, and then he opted out of the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka before returning for the Test series against the same opposition.

"He hit a half-century against West Indies, and then he left out for the T20 matches, I believe. There he got runs and looked good, and there was all the more reason that he should have continued playing. But he was not selected or left out, whatever," the former India skipper concluded.

In the ongoing IPL 2022, Kohli has been struggling with his form. He has managed only 216 runs in 11 matches at an average of 21.60, including a solitary fifty.