Virat Kohli stepped down as India's Test captain in January 2022.
Ganguly's comment came in the wake of fans advocating the reinstatement of Kohli as India's Test captain after the Rohit Sharma-led side endured a 209-run defeat at the hands of Australia in the WTC 2023 final.
"BCCI was not prepared for Virat Kohli leaving the Test captaincy. It was unexpected for us also after the South Africa tour. Only Virat Kohli can reveal why he left the captaincy. There is no point talking about this now because Virat Kohli left the Test captaincy. Selectors had to appoint an India captain. And Rohit was the best option at that time," Ganguly told Aaj Tak in an exclusive chat.
Notably, Kohli stepped down as India’s T20I captain following the T20 World Cup in November 2021 but the selectors sacked him as ODI skipper citing that they don’t want different individuals leading the white-ball teams. By January 2022, he gave up the Test captaincy as well after the series loss in South Africa.
Virat Kohli finished his tenure as the fourth-most successful captain in Test history. He led India in 68 Tests, registering 40 wins, 17 losses and 11 draws. The highlight of his stint as Test captain was leading India to a series win on Australian soil in 2018-19.
Kohli also holds the record for scoring the most Test runs for India as captain. In 113 innings, he scored 5864 runs at an average of 54.80 with 20 centuries and 18 fifties.