Former Australia skipper Ian Chappell lavished high praises on former Indian skipper Virat Kohli, who recently stepped down from the position of India’s Test skipper. The decision came a day after India suffered a 1-2 series defeat against South Africa in the three-match Test series.
Notably, Virat Kohli, who took the reins from MS Dhoni in 2014-2015, finished as India’s most successful Test skipper, with 40 wins in 68 Test matches. Virat Kohli’s seven-year-long tenure as the Indian skipper is one of the most glorious eras in the history of Indian cricket, especially when it comes to the longest format of the game.
Calling him a ‘successful captain’, in his column for ESPNcricinfo, Ian Chappell wrote:
“The successful captain is Virat Kohli of India. When Kohli took over after the successful reign of MS Dhoni, there was one major concern: would his boundless enthusiasm cloud his judgment as a leader? There’s no doubt Kohli was an exception as captain; he didn’t curb his enthusiasm but he was still able to lead the Indian team to a higher level. With the capable assistance of vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane, he lifted India to overseas success as no other captain had done,”
He added:
“His two personal major overseas successes were Australia in 2018-19 and England in 2021. At home, his side was virtually unbeatable, with only a loss apiece to Australia and England in 31 Tests. Kohli took the legacy of Sourav Ganguly and Dhoni and substantially built on it in seven years at the helm. His biggest disappointment as captain was the recent series loss to South Africa after India led the away series 1-0, though he didn’t captain in the middle Test of that series, in Cape Town,”
Further, Ian Chappell highlighted how Virat Kohli instilled the craving for Test cricket in everyone. While he hailed Virat Kohli for his number of personal achievements, but he pointed out how his biggest achievement was the growth of Rishabh Pant. He wrote:
“One of Kohli’s great achievements was instilling in his team craving for Test cricket. Despite his all-encompassing success, Kohli’s major aim was to achieve victory in the Test arena and this is where his passion really shone. There is no doubt that Kohli drove his men hard but it’s also apparent they enjoyed competing and wanted success. Kohli has a number of individual achievements in his resume, none bigger than the development of Rishabh Pant as a wicketkeeper and batter,”
He added:
“Kohli tended to get his way when it came to selection and some of his decisions in this area were a little questionable but there’s no doubting his support of Pant was a masterstroke. Performance is another factor in ranking a captain and in his Tests as captain, Kohli averaged a masterly 54. He also has to be commended for resigning at a time of his choosing,”
Meanwhile, Virat will be next seen in action in the upcoming white-ball series against the West Indies.
