IPL 2021: Virat Kohli quits as India T20I and RCB captaincy: While writings were on the wall, Virat Kohli finally called it quits as a captain for the India T20 team and Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper in a span of a week. For many, it came as a surprise as he took the decision on the eve of two important tournaments in the T20 World Cup and IPL 2021. While many felt that it was only due to his poor batting form, that’s not the sole reason.
With no century in 52 innings for a batsman of his stature, Virat Kohli’s struggles were clear as a batsman. In England, he repeated the same mistakes that he did back in 2014 while he refused to accept reality. As per reports, he didn’t want to take advice from the coaches either during India nets sessions. In IPL, he has been entrusted despite poor performance from the team year after year. That affected his batting performance too — something that Virat Kohli doesn’t want to see as he enters the final stretch of his career at 33.
IPL 2021: At InsideSport, we take a look at 3 reasons why Virat Kohli decided to step down as RCB and India T20I captain.
Dip in batting form: Even three years ago, Virat Kohli was considered the only batsman who could surpass Sachin Tendulkar’s batting records of 100 centuries. Fast forward to 2021, not many can say that with certainty. He isn’t amongst the best and has lost the top spot in all three formats to Joe Root (Test), Babar Azam (ODI) and Dawid Malan (T20Is).
It will be unfair to say that Virat Kohli’s form has dropped after taking over the captaincy in all three formats besides IPL. That hasn’t been the case. But it was after the high in England in 2018 that King Kohli’s stocks started to drop. That coincided with the lack of ICC trophies. India lost the 2019 World Cup semifinal and the 2021 WTC Final both against New Zealand and before that the 2017 Champions Trophy Final. In between, Royal Challengers Bangalore endured a trophy-less run apart from managing some lows including the lowest total and finishing at the bottom of the points table.
🇮🇳 ❤️ pic.twitter.com/Ds7okjhj9J
— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) September 16, 2021
IPL 2021: The last time he scored a century was back in 2019 against Bangladesh at the Eden Gardens and since then he has had a torrid run as a batsman and has looked a shadow of his former self. Since the century, Virat Kohli’s Test average has dropped to 26.80, ODI average to 43.26. In IPL, his average dropped 39.06. Only in T20Is that he maintained a better average.
With over 50 matches a year apart and a workload of leading four teams besides crossing 30 years mark, he has seen a dip in form.
Virat Kohli’s captaincy record:
- As India’s T20I captain, Kohli has a winning percentage of 65.11.
- In 45 matches, Kohli-led India have won 27 and lost 14.
- In IPL, the record is abysmal. In fact, he has one of the poor records in the league.
- In 132 matches, Kohli’s RCB have won just 60 and lost 65 with a winning percentage of 48.04%.
- Under Kohli, RCB have lost one final and two IPL playoffs.
- During this period, RCB also had a high of scoring 263 runs in an innings and 49, the lowest, in an innings.
No more backing from Ravi Shastri: The other change that he will face in the dressing room is the absence of head coach Ravi Shastri as he has decided to step down after the T20 World Cup. During his tenure in the last four years, he has been an avid backer of Virat Kohli. On every occasion, he has supported Kohli wholeheartedly at his best and also worst. As Shastri is leaving, he will lose a big support in the dressing room.
Virat Kohli to step down from RCB captaincy after #IPL2021
“This will be my last IPL as captain of RCB. I’ll continue to be an RCB player till I play my last IPL game. I thank all the RCB fans for believing in me and supporting me.”: Virat Kohli#PlayBold #WeAreChallengers pic.twitter.com/QSIdCT8QQM
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) September 19, 2021
IPL 2021: Unlike Anil Kumble, Virat Kohli and Shastri has shared great mutual respect. The two have backed each other over time and the Indian skipper has been habituated with the free-hand approach that he missed under Kumble, leading to a fallout. He won’t have that anymore.
Lack of trust in dressing room: Although under Virat Kohli, players like Mohammed Siraj, Rishabh Pant and even KL Rahul to some extent, there is a clear division in the dressing room. His lack of form has crept into the dressing room and his decisions have been questioned. Even dropping Ravi Ashwin on England tour wasn’t seen as a positive by many in the dressing room. As per report, players feel more comfortable talking to Rohit Sharma than Kohli, leading to a division within the team.
Had he continued, it would have led to a further division that would hamper his performance furthermore.
