Published: Feb 27, 2023, 10:08 AM (IST)
Edited: Feb 27, 2023, 10:08 AM (IST)
New Delhi: Virat Kohli was one of the most successful captains in Indian cricket. Kohli led India to wins across countries, including twin series wins in Australia, however, he failed to lead India to a win in the ICC tournament, despite reaching the knockouts on multiple occasions. Speaking on RCB Podcast, Kohli revealed he was considered a failed captain as he could not give India an ICC trophy.
“Look you play to win tournaments, and a lot was made of it (India not winning ICC tournaments) to be honest,” Kohli said. “ We reached the finals of 2017 Champions Trophy, we reached the semis of the World Cup and finals of the Test Championship, and I was considered as a failed captain. I never judged myself from that point of view.
“What we ended up achieving as a team and the cultural change, for me that’s always going to be a matter of pride because tournaments happen for a certain period of time but a culture happens over a long period of time, and for that you need consistency, for that you need more character than just winning a tournament.”
Reacting to Kohli’s remark, former England cricketer Monty Panesar took a brutal dig at the former India captain saying that no one remembers second or third place teams. “Unfortunately, that’s the pressure of being captain of India. No one remembers second or third place teams. We always remember winners of ICC tournaments,” Panesar wrote.
Under Kohli, India reached the final of 2017 ICC Champions Trophy and 2021 ICC World Test Championship, losing to Pakistan and New Zealand respectively. The team also reached the semis of the 2019 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, losing to the New Zealand. The team had a forgettable group-stage exit in the 2021 Men’s T20 World Cup.
