Virat Kohli to step down as T20 captain after end of ICC World T20 2021

In an incredible turn of events, Virat Kohli has announced his decision to step down from the Indian T20 team as captain after the ICC T20 World Cup. Kohli let the world know of his decision via a tweet on Thursday. In it, he said that he had put a lot of thought into the decision, citing personal time as one of the reasons. The batter also said that he had spoken with the likes of BCCI General Secretary Jay Shah and President Sourav Ganguly and the other selectors regarding the decision. Kohli will still remain the skipper of the Test and ODI sides, but the responsibility of leading the side in the shortest format of the game will fall on someone else’s shoulders. Going by records, the candidate seems to be Rohit Sharma, but nothing has been confirmed by the BCCI yet.

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— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) September 16, 2021

Despite being one of the more successful captains that Indian cricket has seen, Kohli’s captaincy has been called into question a number of times. He still has the infamous record of not being able to win a single ICC trophy despite having one of the strongest sides in the world. He has come extremely close, but it has always ended in heartbreak for the Indian skipper. The latest loss came at the hands of New Zealand in the final of the ICC World Test Championship.

THE STATEMENT

“I have been fortunate enough to not only represent India but also lead the Indian Cricket Team to my utmost capability. I thank everyone who has supported me in my journey as the Captain of the Indian Cricket Team. I couldn’t have done it without them – the boys, the support staff; the selection committee, my coaches, and each and every Indian who prayed for us to win,” the tweet read.

“Understanding workload is a very important thing and considering my immense workload over the last 8-9 years playing all 3 formats and captaining regularly for the last 5-6 years, I feel I need to give myself space to be fully ready to lead the Indian Team in Test and ODI Cricket. I have given everything to the Team during my time as T20 Captain and I will continue to do so for the T20 Team as a batsman moving forward.

“After a lot of contemplation and discussions with my close people, Ravi bhai and also Rohit, who have been an essential part of the leadership group, I’ve decided to step down as the T20 Captain after this T20 World Cup in Dubai in October. I have also spoken to the secretary Mr Jay Shah and the President of BCCI Mr Sourav Ganguly along with all the selectors about the same. I will continue to serve Indian Cricket and the Indian Team to the best of my ability,” it added.

BCCI President Sourav Ganguly thanked Kohli for his spectacular performance as the T20 captain of the side later in the day. “Virat has been a true asset for Indian Cricket and has led with aplomb. He is one of the most successful captains in all the formats. The decision has been made keeping in mind the future roadmap. We thank Virat for his tremendous performance as the T20I Captain. We wish him all the best for the upcoming World Cup and beyond and hope that he continues to score plenty of runs for India,” Ganguly said.

NOT IN LINE WITH BCCI STATEMENT

Kohli will lead India into the T20 World Cup but that will be his last stint as skipper of the T20 team. The decision really does come out of the blue as the BCCI spoke about Kohli just a couple of days earlier. Secretary Jay Shah had said that there was no question regarding a captaincy change in the white-ball format, as per a report in The Indian Express.

“As long as a team is performing while on the crease, the question of change in captaincy doesn’t arise,” Shah had reportedly said. Earlier on the same day, BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla rubbished the reports, saying there has been nothing discussed on the idea of split captaincy. The situation now definitely points in the other direction.