'I was considered a failed captain,' says Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli remains one of India's high-yielding captains across formats, especially in Tests. He powered India to numerous momentous wins. However, Team India couldn't win an ICC trophy during his reign. On Saturday, Kohli, talking on the RCB podcast, stated that he was considered a "failed captain" for not winning a major trophy. He also spoke about his bond with his predecessor, MS Dhoni.
Why does this story matter?
Kohli was embroiled in controversies after leaving India's T20I captaincy in 2021. As speculations regarding the same were rife, Kohli was removed as India's ODI skipper. After a few months, Kohli stepped down as India's Test captain too. Kohli left on a high and his captaincy numbers drew attention. He finished as a productive captain despite leaving empty-handed in terms of ICC trophies.
Here is what Kohli said
"Look, you play to win tournaments. After four ICC tournaments, I was considered a failed captain," said Kohli. "I never judged myself from that point; what we ended up achieving as a team and as a cultural change is always going to be a matter of pride for me. A tournament happens for a certain period, but a culture happens over a long haul."
Kohli led India in four major tournaments
Kohli's first tournament in charge was the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy. India finished as the runners-up after losing to arch-rivals Pakistan. India lost to New Zealand in the semi-finals of the 2019 ICC World Cup. In 2021, India reached the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final, but the Kiwis hammered them. India then failed to qualify for the 2021 T20 World Cup semis.
Kohli left a rich legacy behind
Kohli led India for seven years, having taken over completely from 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 bowling unit that helped India win Tests away from home. Despite being unable to achieve the ICC silverware, he left a rich legacy behind.
Kohli's numbers as captain across formats
Kohli finished as India's most successful captain in red-ball cricket. Under him, India won 40 of 68 Tests. Kohli is only behind Graeme Smith (53), Ricky Ponting (48), and Steve Waugh (41) in terms of Test wins as captain. Kohli attained a win percentage of 70.43 as captain in ODIs (65 wins in 95 matches). Meanwhile, India won 30 of 50 T20Is under him.
Third-most runs as captain across formats
Kohli still has the third-most runs as captain in international cricket. He racked up 12,883 runs while leading India in 213 games at an astronomical average of 59.92. He is only behind Ponting (15,440) and Smith (14,878) in terms of runs as captain. Moreover, Kohli has the joint-most centuries while leading in international cricket (41) with Ponting.
Only Dhoni messaged when I left Test captaincy: Kohli
Kohli was in a downward spiral after leaving captaincy. He was unable to break his string of low scores. However, the wait finally ended at the Asia Cup when he slammed his first international century in nearly three years (against Afghanistan). Before that match, Kohli highlighted his long-standing alliance with Dhoni. The former admitted that once he left Test captaincy, only Dhoni contacted him.
The smooth transition from Dhoni to Kohli
In 2014, Dhoni handed over the reins of India's Test side after retiring from the format. However, the former captain continued to lead in ODIs and T20Is until 2017. Kohli became India's all-format captain that year. The smooth transition from Dhoni to Kohli was hailed by the cricket fraternity. The duo shared the Indian dressing room for over a decade.
