Kohli steps down as Test captain: Decoding his captaincy records
Virat Kohli has stepped down as the captain of the Indian cricket team in Tests. The 33-year-old Kohli confirmed the same a day after India lost the three-match Test series 1-2 against South Africa. Earlier, Kohli had left captaincy from T20I cricket and was later stripped off his leadership duties in 50-over cricket. Here we decode Kohli's captaincy records in Test cricket.
Kohli achieved these numbers as Test captain
Kohli captained Team India in 68 Test matches. This is the highest number of matches by an Indian Test captain. Kohli and MS Dhoni (60) are the only two cricketers to have led India in 60-plus Tests. Kohli went on to win 40 Test matches as captain (highest), besides losing 17, drawing 11. He has the best win percentage of 58.82 (minimum 10 Tests).
Why does it matter?
Kohli led India for seven years, taking over the responsibility from MS Dhoni. Under Kohli, India reached new heights and performed at the highest level. Along with Ravi Shastri and the support staff, Kohli built a solid Indian side, who produced key results home and away. Kohli also scored heavily as a batter and scripted several records. He leaves a rich legacy behind.
Only Indian captain with over one Test win in SA
By winning the first Test against South Africa in Centurion in the recently concluded series, Kohli became the only Indian captain to win more than one Test match in the nation. During the 2017-18 tour, India won the third Test in Johannesburg under him. Rahul Dravid was the first Indian captain to win in South Africa (Johannesburg, 2006-07) Dhoni followed suit in 2010-11 (Durban).
First Indian captain to win 40 Tests
In 2019, Kohli became India's most successful Test captain after surpassing Dhoni in terms of wins. The former added another feather to his cap during the Boxing Day Test in Centurion. He became the first-ever Indian skipper to win 40 Test matches. Kohli is only behind legends Graeme Smith (53), Ricky Ponting (48), and Steve Waugh (41) on the overall list (wins as captain).
Fourth-highest scorer as captain in Tests
Kohli has scored the fourth-highest runs in Tests as captain. He has racked up 5,864 runs at an average of 54.80. Kohli is only behind Graeme Smith (8,659), Allan Border (6,623), and Ricky Ponting (6,542) in terms of runs as a captain in Tests. Kohli registered the second-highest number of centuries as captain (20) and is only behind Smith (25).
Kohli has won eight Tests against South Africa
Kohli became the first Indian captain to win a Test in Centurion. India ended the winning streak of the Proteas, who had won seven consecutive Tests at the SuperSport Park since December 2014. Kohli now has a total of eight Test wins as captain against South Africa, the joint-most for any captain against them with former Australian captain Ponting.
How did Kohli fare in his final series as captain?
In the Centurion Test, Kohli managed scores of 35 and 18. India went on to win that match by 113 runs. Kohli missed the second Test in Johannesburg with a back spasm. In his absence, KL Rahul led the side. Kohli returned for the third Test, getting scores of 79 and 29. He batted with a purpose but failed to help India win.
