Former BCCI President Sourav Ganguly revealed that he was surprised as anyone in the world when he heard that Indian batting maestro Virat Kohli stepped away from red-ball captaincy following India’s 2-1 defeat against South Africa in January 2022.
Virat Kohli decided to step away from T20 captaincy following the completion 2021 T20 World Cup in Dubai, while then the BCCI President Sourav Ganguly and his management stripped Kohli of ODI Captaincy stating that it would be better to have the same captain in the white-ball format of the game in 2021, following which the ace Indian batter gave up the captaincy in the longer format of the game in 2022.
It was widely speculated that they were a rift between Kohli and Ganguly over the captaincy saga, Speaking to the media, Sourav Ganguly said that he was totally surprised about Virat Kohli’s decision to give up the captaincy in red-ball cricket and added that Rohit Sharma was the best option available to replace him as the test captain during that time.
“No (on the board’s preparedness on Kohli giving up Test captaincy). Not after the South Africa series. I don’t know (why he did so), only he can tell. After Virat left, Rohit Sharma was the best option available at that time,” Sourav Ganguly Said on Aaj Tak.
Virat Kohli has been one of the most successful captains for India in red-ball cricket for India. Many of India’s important test series win has come under Virat Kohli and in his captaincy, the Indian fast bowling unit has played exceptionally well in overseas conditions as the Indian team become a force to reckon with in red-ball cricket his leadership of him.
India Did Really Well Under Virat Kohli And Ravi Shastri – Sourav Ganguly
Sourav Ganguly hailed Virat Kohli for his captaincy stint with the Indian team, as the team performed very well during his tenure playing a fearless brand of cricket against high-quality opponents like England and Australia, and believes that the Indian team could have won the series in England in 2021 if it was postponed due to covid.
“Kohli was a very good captain, India did really well under Kohli & Shastri, India played with a fearless attitude and showed guts in England & Australia. If they had played the Manchester Test at that time, they would’ve won the series in England as well,” Sourav Ganguly added.
Virat Kohli was the most successful red-ball skipper as he has led India to 40 victories in 68 Tests. Kohli has led India to numerous memorable Test series wins in home and away conditions redefining India’s approach in the longer format of the game. While Virat Kohli was criticized by many for failing to win an ICC trophy during his tenure, he was one of the most successful in some memorable series for India in overseas conditions.