Shoaib Akhtar has thrown a bouncer at Virat Kohli’s critics, asking them if the Indian great’s 70 international hundreds were scored in his “aunt’s backyard”.

Joining the debate on Kohli’s lean patch, the former Pakistan speedster, on his YouTube channel, said: “...as a Pakistani, why am I supporting Kohli? Well, he has 70 hundreds. Woh 70 sau khaala ke ghar mein ya candy crush khelte huye nahi banein hain (Those 70 tons were not scored in his aunt’s backyard or while playing Candy Crush).”

Calls for dropping Kohli bewilder Shoaib further. “How did you even imagine in your wildest dreams that Kohli can be dropped from the Indian team?... when I hear these things, I laugh and tell people, ‘Virat has been the greatest batter in the world in the last 10 years’.

“Yes, he has had a couple of lean years and even in those years, he has scored runs if not hundreds. Suddenly everyone getting up in arms against him isn’t right,” the ‘Rawalpindi Express’ said.

Akhtar thinks Kohli is still carrying the baggage of captaincy and advised him to be more patient.

“My advice to Virat would be simple — he should forget that he ever was the captain of India with all the limelight on him and just focus on his batting. “Runs will come if he sticks around and just mere hitting won’t suffice. I had predicted 110 international hundreds and once he is back in form, he will hit 30 hundreds,” said Akhtar.