Despite the cancellations of numerous sporting events, 2020 saw Virat Kohli land himself in hot water over his performance as a captain. Exhibit A – India losing the Test Series against New Zealand in the first quarter, Exhibit B – RCB failed to make the IPL finals despite a great lineup, Exhibit C – India lost the first Test in Australia just before Kohli’s paternity leave. You get where this is going. Despite being one of the most successful captains of all time and a batting legend at such a young age, the setbacks in 2020 have led to some criticism in Kohli’s captaincy
A critic of Kohli’s style as a captain, former cricketer Gautam Gambhir had a lot to say about India’s performance in the ODI series against Australia. Pointing at the tactical errors made by the captain in ESPNCricinfo’s show, Gambhir questioned Kohli’s decision to let Jasprit Bumrah, one of the star bowlers that India currently has, only two overs to bowl up front. Gambhir refers to this as a ‘tactical blunder’.
In addition to this, Kohli was also criticised for not choosing Kuldeep Yadav over an injured and out-of-form Yuzvendra Chahal and not placing a tactical number three after openers Mayank Agarwal and Shikhar Dhawan to be able to successfully maintain the required rate pressure.
As a stand-in captain while Kohli went on paternity leave, Ajinkya Rahane made these errors, and the inefficiency of the former’s captaincy immediately became apparent. Commenting on Kohli’s style of captaincy Rudi Webster, a veteran Barbadian cricketer said that although he doesn’t believe Kohli to be a bad captain, he would not have been able to lead the team to success in Gabba the way Rahane did in the Test series against Australia. “The predicament they found themselves in with the injuries and all could have been overwhelming for Kohli’s style of management.”
Rahane brought to the table what Kohli has never been known for — empathy. While the team captain is all about creating pressure, the deputy cares more about ensuring that his playing XI are completely in-sync with each other. So highly praised was his captaincy during the test series in Australia that cricket veterans around the world have suggested he replaces Kohli as the test captain for team India.
Talking about the difference in styles between the two, Indian bowling coach Bharat Arun said, “With Virat Kohli, if you bowl two bad balls, it might look like he will get angry, but that’s just his energy. Ajinkya brings the calmness, of course, even if he buys-in the plan, he makes sure he executes it to the T.”
To add to the Kohli vs Rahane debate, former Australian all-rounder Shane Lee believes that Indian players are ‘almost scared to put a foot out of line’ under Kohli’s leadership.
What are your thoughts on Virat Kohli’s captaincy? Do you think he should take a leaf off of Rahane’s books? And more importantly, is Rahane going to replace Kohli as the test captain for team India? — Get an insider scoop into the world of cricket. Sign up for the IndiNews newsletter today!
