Is Virat Kohli The Most Powerful Man In Indian Cricket?

Jul 13, 2017 at 2:15 PM

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Is Virat Kohli The Most Powerful Man In Indian Cricket?

Arguably the greatest batsman of the modern generation, Virat Kohli has been in the news off late not necessarily for his exploits with the bat. His sour relationship with former Indian coach Anil Kumble was doing the rounds way before the Champions Trophy commenced and following India’s humiliating loss to Pakistan in the final, it was evident that some big call was about to be taken either by the board or by Kohli or Kumble and it was the latter who eventually resigned from his post to allow normalcy to prevail.

In his heartfelt message, Kumble wrote that he was informed very recently that the captain had reservations with his coaching style and he would like to move on and allow the Indian team to strive under someone with whom Kohli gets along well. It was a proof of the sheer simplicity of the legendary leg-spinner who could have continued his role given the fact that the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAO) comprising of Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman had extended his tenure.

There is no doubt about the fact that Virat Kohli is currently the best Indian batsmen if not the best in the world but does he possess the same abilities as a leader? Performing with the bat doesn’t always mean leading from the front, you also have to be the guy in the team whom the rest of the team looks up to and besides the cricketing matters I don’t feel he has done any justice to his reputation.

We all are aware of the fact that he is a highly emotional character and doesn’t shy away from taking a dig at his oppositions. He has been a sensational batsman for India over the years but does he have the same abilities as a leader of the national team?? Maybe yes but given his temperament, a slump in the captaincy form might not be far away.

Though India has performed exceptionally well under Kohli until now especially in the longest format but does it guarantee that they will perform like the same way when they travel overseas? Those will be the conditions where Kohli will be tested and his temperament and lack of composure might be his drawback.

Following Kumble’s resignation, the name of Virender Sehwag and Tom Moody was doing the rounds but suddenly Ravi Shastri’s name sprung up and he was eventually named the head coach till the 2019 World Cup. Now, what was the reason behind BCCI extending the dates of submission when the deadline date had already passed? It was simply to accommodate Shastri in the scheme of things and finally, he was formally elected today.

Kumble was chosen over Shastri in the coach selection process last year which was decided by the Cricket Advisory Committee comprising of Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman. The relationship between Ganguly and Shastri took an ugly turn when Shastri took a dig at the former captain by asking him to be present in future meetings. Ganguly wasn’t present at that meeting and had joined the panel via Skype.

Now the question arises that despite the differences between Shastri and Ganguly – how come Shastri was elected.?The answer perhaps lies with the Indian captain Virat Kohli. He shared a really good bonding with Shastri when the latter was the team director and backed him to be the coach after Kumble’s resignation. Without his inputs, Shastri wouldn’t have been appointed ever.

Now the next question which comes to mind, Is Virat Kohli the most powerful man in Indian cricket currently? Being a cricket lover it’s pretty difficult to deny this fact especially after what has transpired in the last few days. Especially with the sort of relation Shastri and Ganguly had who would have given Shastri a chance to become India’s coach.

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