Virat Kohli, in a shocking move, has announced his decision to step down as the captain of the Indian cricket team after the team lost 1-2 to South Africa.
Follow Us
Virat Kohli has shocked the cricketing world in the aftermath of the Test series loss to South Africa. The Indian cricket team skipper took to his official Instagram handle to announce that he is stepping down as the skipper of the Indian cricket team in Tests. Before the tour to South Africa, Virat Kohli had been asked by the BCCI to step down as the ODI captain. Prior to the tour of South Africa, he had stepped down as the captain of the Twenty20 International side.
On his Instagram handle, he wrote, “It’s been seven years of hard work, toil, and relentless perseverance everyday. I have done the job with absolute honesty. Everything has come to a halt now at some stage and for me as Test captain of India. I have always believed in giving 120 percent to everything I do. If I cannot do it, I know it is not the right thing to do. I cannot be dishonest to the team.”
Read – Virat Kohli and the DRS Drama not Good Viewing
Kohli also stated in his Instagram post that he thanked the BCCI, MS Dhoni and Ravi Shastri. “I would like to thank the BCCI for the opportunity to lead the country for a long and memorable time. I would like to thank MS Dhoni who believed in me as the captain and found me an able individual who would take Indian cricket forward,” Kohli stated. He also thanked the backroom staff for ensuring India’s progress in Test cricket was upwards.
Virat Kohli took over as the full-time captain of the Indian cricket team in the 2015 series against Sri Lanka. India won in Sri Lanka after 22 years but his major impact came in the next few years. Kohli will forever be remembered as the captain who helped India win a series in Australia for the first time ever. Under his captaincy, Kohli has ensured that India will not lose a series in England for the first time after 14 years.
At home, Kohli and the Indian cricket team have been invincible. They won series against England, Australia, Bangladesh and New Zealand in 2016. They continued the dominance by beating South Africa, New Zealand, Bangladesh and England in 2019 till 2021.
But, in the ICC World Test Championship final, India suffered a defeat to New Zealand in the final by eight wickets. Under the captaincy of Kohli, India were whitewashed 2-0 in New Zealand. But, in the series against South Africa, India squandered a 0-1 advantage to lose the Johannesburg and Cape Town Test. The margins of defeat in both the Tests by seven wickets.
Kohli has also struggled with the bat. Ever since the last century in 2019 against Bangladesh, Kohli has not hit a century in any format. He has come close to reaching a century but has not managed to convert it into a big score. His average in Tests in these last two years has been just under 30. However, his ODI and T20I average is well over 40. It will be interesting to see what is the next step Kohli takes in 2022.
