Indian skipper Virat Kohli has often been criticized heavily for not winning any ICC trophy by losing crucial knockout matches. The recently concluded World Test Championship (WTC) final was the third such instance after Champions Trophy 2017 and World Cup 2019.
But, the former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal has questioned the credibility of people pointing out fingers at Kohli, who Akmal believes is the best captain after MS Dhoni.
“Virat Kohli is the best captain after MS Dhoni. He has 70 centuries. He played the Champions Trophy and the 2019 World Cup. Sure enough, India lost but what is his fault in it? India have remained the No. 1 Test for five years,” Akmal told sports presenter Sawera Pasha on her YouTube channel.
“Look at his achievement, his service… his captaincy is terrific. There is no doubt about it. He is an amazing player and the way he has prepared himself is phenomenal,” he added.
"What cricket he would play," felt Kamran Akmal about Virat Kohli in IPL 2008
According to the wicketkeeper-batsman, winning an ICC trophy is all about the day of the match and even if Kohli is replaced with someone else at helm, it will not guarantee an ICC title. The 39-year-old also lashed out at people advising the Indian captain.
“He is an amazing player, amazing captain, and no one can guarantee that if India changes the captain, they will win ICC tournaments. It is a matter of luck. It is easy to point fingers, especially those who have no idea about cricket. People who have not even led a gull team are now giving Kohli and India advise to change their captain,” the wicket-keeper batsman pointed out.
There are many experts who suggested split captaincy in India considering how demanding all three formats of the game are and with an ICC tournament in every format, dividing the workload only made sense.