IPL 2019: Virat Kohli Gives Gautam Gambhir Fitting Reply After Captaincy Jibe

Mar 23, 2019 at 9:59 AM

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IPL 2019: Virat Kohli  Gives Gautam Gambhir Fitting Reply After Captaincy Jibe

Just days ahead of the Indian Premier League, Gautam Gambhir created quite a stir with his comment on Virat Kohli’s captaincy for Royal Challengers Bangalore. Gambhir, who led Kolkata Knight Riders to two IPL titles, said that Kohli should consider himself lucky for retaining the Royal Challengers’ captaincy.

Kohli took charge of the team in 2013 after the retirement of Daniel Vettori and so far he has really not managed to make a mark as captain. In fact, the Bangalore-based outfit is one of the most inconsistent teams in the league in the last few years. Ever since Kohli took charge, they made it to the playoffs just once when in 2016 their skipper scored nearly 1,000 runs and led the team to the final.

The performance of the team last year was equally unimpressive. They finished sixth in the eight-team competition after winning just six of their 14 games.

“I don’t see him as a shrewd captain. I don’t see him as a tactful captain (tactician). And he hasn’t won the IPL. So ultimately, a captain is only as good as his record,” Gautam Gambhir told Star Sports.

Gautam Gambhir (R) and Kohli (Credits: BCCI)

Well, Virat Kohli has now finally responded to the criticism. Speaking ahead of the tournament-opener against Chennai Super Kings, Kohli did not beat around the bush as he took a shot at his critics, saying he would be “sitting at home if he thinks like people from outside”.

“Obviously, you want to win the IPL. I am doing what I am supposed to do. I don’t care whether I am going to be judged on this (not winning IPL) or not. There is no real, sort of, parameters you set. I try to perform wherever I can. I try to win all the possible titles, but sometimes it just doesn’t happen,” said Kohli.

“We have to be practical about why we haven’t won one. That boils down to bad decision making in pressure situations. If I think like people from outside, I can’t even sustain five games. I would be sitting at home,” Kohli added.

He further said how motivated and dedicated he is to help the Royal Challengers win their first IPL title.

“We all are motivated to do so. It has not happened and that’s the reality. No excuses for that. Only acceptance of the faults that we made in the past. The fact that we played six semi-finals means that we have been a side who are always in contention. If we make better decisions, we can go further than that. That’s how I see things,” Kohli said.

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