Who said India have better top-order options than Kohli? Not us
We'd certainly not do anything so unjustified and ridiculous
"Pop? 'Dad' would have sounded so much nicer - warm and cuddly, just like me" • ICC/Getty Images
In 2015, the apostle Brendon McCullum, patron saint of the leg-side bash, landed upon England's shores and there, provoked by the profound sorrow inflicted by England's boring-ass style of play, spread his glorious message. A message of audacity. A message of unrelenting enterprise under steel-grey skies. Of intensity. Spunk. Hope.
Don't be crazy. We would never say that about the king. Every player goes through a form slump. And he's one of the greatest of all time. He always bats better for India, anyway. IPL is just training for him. And look at his hunger. He may not have scored that many runs, but man did he punch the living daylights out of the air around him when he was in the field.
No good innings from Kohli can pass without his old partner in crime, Ravi Shastri, passing a glowing comment upon it. Sometimes we're lucky enough to have this happen on this very website. Following Kohli's best innings of the season - a 54-ball 73 against Gujarat Titans that helped Royal Challengers qualify for the playoffs - Shastri explained that runs from Kohli aren't just runs, they are a phenomenon that sets the whole cricketing world in alignment.
Is cricket truly in the post-Covid age? Some drama from Bangladesh (which as usual means drama involving Shakib Al Hasan), is providing hope. Five days before the first Test against Sri Lanka, Shakib tested positive for Covid, which everyone assumed meant he would be out of the first Test at least. But then four days later, Shakib returned a negative Test, and was seemingly in contention to play, even if coach Russell Domingo was wary of playing him if he was only "50-60% fit".
Folks, we've sometimes lightly ribbed SLC on the Briefing over the perpetual dearth of IQ points among their top brass. But last month they did okay, actually. In the midst of Sri Lanka's crippling economic crisis, they donated US$2 million to hospitals, which have been short of medicines. They have managed to organise a bilateral tour for the women's team, to Pakistan, after failing to give the women any game time almost right through the pandemic. And word on the street is that most officials have turned up to work without their shoelaces tied together, if you can believe that. Bless.
Andrew Fidel Fernando is ESPNcricinfo's Sri Lanka correspondent. @afidelf