Former India coach Ravi Shastri recently made an interesting statement following Virat Kohli’s resignation as Test captain that has got everyone thinking.
Kohli stepped down as India’s Test captain after the series loss in South Africa. Ravi Shastri believes that Kohli could have led in the longest format for a couple of more years, but that some “people wouldn’t have digested his success”.
This was perhaps a hint at the BCCI for Kohli and the board have been in strife for the past few months.
Reacting to Shastri’s remark, veteran India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh said that although he has no idea whom the former coach is referring to, Kohli achieving more success as India’s Test captain would have made him and Indian fans largely happy and proud.
“This is a big statement – Ravi Shastri saying that people wouldn’t have digested it had Virat Kohli won another 15-20 Test matches and enhanced his legacy as India’s most successful captain. I don’t know who he is talking about, who wouldn’t have digested it but we Indians would have been extremely proud of it. We would have wished he won another 40 and create a record that another Indian captain would have needed to captain twice to match it,” Harbhajan said on Sports Tak.
Virat Kohli finished as India’s most successful Test captain with 40 wins, with 16 of those coming away.
Shastri’s comments revealed that he believes India would dominate the upcoming home Test series. Kohli’s incredible record at home – India never lost a home Test series under Kohli and lost a total of 2 Tests – makes Shastri’s opinion pronounced.
Harbhajan Singh, though, disagreed, saying that Rahul Dravid may not want rank turners that India had played on in the Virat Kohli-Ravi Shastri era, and instead, feels that better batting pitches may be seen going forward.
“The matches that are to take place in India, you cannot pre-determine that their outcomes will go in your favour. Yes, you had some great series where you were extremely successful, but going forward, whether Kohli would have won those matches is something only time would have told.
“With Rahul Dravid as coach, I don’t think India would play on surfaces where the ball would spin from the first over. In fact, I feel there will be pitches where batters too would get a fair chance to prove themselves,” Harbhajan Singh added.
