Virat Kohli on Saturday (January 15) left everyone stunned with his decision to quit India’s Test captaincy. He stepped down from the position after leading the side for seven years.
Taking to Twitter, Kohli made the big announcement, a day after India’s 2-1 Test series loss to South Africa.
Two days after his resignation, a report published in Hindustan Times claims that a senior BCCI official offered Kohli a farewell match as captain against Sri Lanka in Bengaluru but he refused, saying: “One match makes no difference. That’s not how I am.”
India’s next Test assignment is the home series against Sri Lanka. The two-Test series is due to get underway on February 25 in Bengaluru. Incidentally, it will be Kohli’s 100th appearance in the longest format of the game.
As per the report, Kohli first delivered the decision about leaving captaincy to head coach Rahul Dravid and his teammates in the dressing room at Newlands. He then informed the BCCI about his decision.
The report further suggests that Kohli is bitterly disappointed with the series loss against South despite taking a 1-0 lead. The BCCI was reportedly keen to offer another series to Kohli the captain, but it is learnt that he wanted to give up the pressures and responsibilities that come as skipper to focus on batting.
Meanwhile, the board isn’t in hurry to name Kohli’s successor and a call would only be taken closer to the Sri Lanka Test series next month.
Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul are the front-runners for the high-profile job. While Rohit is the designated vice-captain, the national selectors, it is learnt, would only appoint him if they are convinced his body can take the workload of leading across formats.
(Inputs from Hindustan Times)
