King Kohli’s batting needs no introduction and he already has the most test wins for an India. He took India to no. 1 position in 2019 and 2020. He has built probably India’s best bowling attack in years. He has built a team that is not afraid to tour away from home conditions. Indian fans have been left pleasantly surprised to see a bowling quartet on the Indian side. His batting average of 52 and 27 centuries in tests is a testament to his batting prowess.
There is no denying the fact that Virat Kohli has been India’s ultimate run-scoring machine in the last decade. He has scored centuries at such a ferocious rate that the impossible feat of surpassing Tendulkar’s hundred 100s seems very much possible. At just 32 years old, he has an unthinkable 70 international hundred.
Apart from his ungodly batting talent, the fourth innings in the fourth test against England proved Kohli’s acumen as a captain. India had the final day to bowl out England and win the fourth test. The bowlers in the Indian team are phenomenal but it required sharp field setting and strategic thinking to break the English batting line-up.
Kohli was fantastic on the field with his captaincy decisions and was successful in winning the test. Therefore, after such highs, fans and critics were taken aback to read news reports about Kohli stepping down from white ball captaincy and hand over the baton to Sharma. We look at reasons as to why Kohli shall continue to lead India in all formats.
In this article, we see reasons why Virat Kohli shouldn’t step down as captain:
1. Successful White Ball Captain
Kohli’s record in white ball cricket as captain is impeccable. He made a mark as captain in 2018 when India won the 5 match series in South Africa, 4-1. The sheer domination of the Indian team against the world class Proteas was treat to watch. India has become uneatable at home. England in 2017, Australia in 2018, New Zealand in 2016 and 17 have all failed to win in India.
2. Fearless Brand of Cricket
He has built a team environment which is different from the past captains. It has taken time but this Indian team has the look and feel of Kohli’s team. they are aggressive, passionate, and give their all as a team. even when losing, this team does not give up without a fight. Their success abroad has been due to the strategy to back pacers. These pacers have delivered over time. To hand over the team to someone else and expect them to build a new environment for the next year’s T20 World Cup and the ICC World Cup the following year would be difficult.
3. Exceptional Performance in ICC tournaments
One could argue that there is no silverware in the past 7 years to show any significant achievement of Kohli’s captaincy. However, it is to be remembered that India have gone into every ICC tournament in the last 5-6 years as favourites. They have made it to the finals of the 2017 Champions Trophy, 2021 ICC World Test Championship, semi-finals of the 2019 and 2016 World Cups. To be in the knockouts with such exceptional frequency speaks about the captain’s achievements.
4. Split-Captaincy has Never Bbreen India’s Way
India’s success in cricket has been on the back of great captaincy. Be it Ganguly or Dhoni, they were excellent leaders who led from the front. There was never split captaincy during Ganguly or Dhoni’s times. Yes, Dhoni did give test captaincy to Kohli while he continued to captain the white ball teams but that was when he retired from test cricket. The format of having split captaincy when both players are part of the other teams has not been tried yet. Its jury is still out on the utility of this system.
