Former India bowling coach Bharat Arun has expressed his surprise over Virat Kohli’s decision to quit Test captaincy, saying that the latter was passionate about leading the country.

Kohli stepped down as Test captain following the 2-1 series loss to South Africa earlier this month. He led the side for seven years with tremendous success, registering 40 wins from 68 Tests. Only Graeme Smith, Ricky Ponting, and Steve Waugh have won more matches than him as captain in Test cricket.

"I was personally surprised that Virat had given up captaincy because every time we had dialogues he was so passionate about leading the country."

“He wanted India to be a dominating force in the world and I thought he had set a wonderful foundation. I personally feel that Virat had at least a couple of years to captain the country,” Arun told News9.

Bharat Arun, who has often been credited for the fast bowling revolution in Indian cricket, served as a bowling coach twice, 2014-15 and 2017-21. His contract ended after the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup campaign last November.

During his tenure, he saw a number of captains leading the Indian team, which included the legendary MS Dhoni.

“I watched MS Dhoni, the coolest mind you could ever have. Nothing fazes him. If you have a mind that is cool, calm, calculative … that is the best state to take decisions on the go, because the decisions have to be very dynamic. You are making decisions on the go. Next to the Prime Minister, the Indian captain is the most enviable job in the country, so I think somebody who can take the pressure [is the right fit],” he said.

Arun also shared his two cents on Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s methods of captaincy.

“If you look at Virat Kohli and Dhoni, contrasting characters. But each one has his way of bringing something to the table. Once he is on the field, Virat is at the opposition. He wants to win at any cost. The energy he brought to the field was absolutely different. He was willing to lead by example, take the bull by its horn and that’s what the captain should do.  If you look at Rohit Sharma, he has a different methodology to his captaincy but he is also equally successful."