What will Kohli’s legacy as captain be? Kohli had been the Indian captain for more than 5 years. Ever since he took over from Dhoni on that ill-fated tour of Australia in 2014, he has always shown an inclination to do things that are out of normal. He understood the effectiveness of a leg-spinner in Australia though the choice of the player wasn’t correct. He wanted to end the lengthy process that Dhoni was so fond of and wanted to see results.
His willingness to play that extra bowler instead of a 6th specialist batsman. His willingness to always standby his players, be it the ugly racial discrimination against Abhinav Mukund or the attack on Shami. The desire to win and win away from home. The importance he gave to Test Cricket when limited overs cricket was running wild. All of these and some more defined Kohli the captain. Having announced his resignation after the humiliating series loss in South Africa, what will Kohli’s legacy as captain be?
Kohli wasn’t afraid to take tough decisions
Kohli risked everything in pursuit of test wins. That single quality defined his entire captaincy career. He wasn’t afraid to drop players like Ashwin or Pujara or Rahane though the same decision came back to bite him towards the end. His very first test as captain, albeit as a stand-in for the injured Dhoni at Adelaide where he motivated his side to win the game chasing a very stiff target. He himself played an innings that unfortunately did not result in an Indian win.
Kohli has always advocated for Test cricket to be given its prime importance. India is notorious for not playing too many Tests but it all changed under Kohli. Test cricket became the focus for both the board and the team. This is not to say that ODI and T20 did not find space but Test cricket was given priority. Players were given breaks from limited overs but against tough opponents, only the first choice players played in tests.
Two of his biggest contribution
Kohli’s two biggest contributions as captain was the importance given to fitness culture and the choice of attack. I can still remember the earlier Indian teams. In India, spinners bowled more than 70% of the overs and the batsmen were able to pile on runs that gave the bowlers ample amount of rest. However, the same wasn’t the case when India toured outside the sub-continent. The purpose of the spinner was to hold one end and help the fast bowlers being rotated. The seamers of that era were hardly able bowl more than one spell at full tilt. The depressing and disheartening tours to England and Australia are still vivid in memory. Bell, KP, Strauss and even Bresnan toyed with the Indian bowlers.
Hundreds and double hundreds were scored with elan. The Indian bowlers were hardly effective and the batsmen, after days in the field, folded quickly. The series in Australia towards the end of that year was even more humiliating. Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey, who were towards the end of their career and hardly able to buy a run for a couple of seasons were suddenly scoring hundreds. As an Indian fan, we never wanted tours anywhere to the SENA countries. We were happy with teams visiting India were the Indians can spin a web around their batsmen.
The Yo-Yo test
Kohli changed that and out went laziness and sluggishness and in came the yo-yo test. Ambati Rayudu and a few others were not considered because they failed the test. It will not be an understatement to state that the fitness of the bowlers was the main reason Indians proved competitive and were able to achieve some memorable wins. Now, Indian bowlers were able to come back for 3rd, 4th spells and bowl with the same intensity. The opponents were always under pressure. Though the batsmen failed to post big totals, that is mainly to do with the non-performance of certain players, the bowlers more or less compensated for the inability of the batsmen.
Kohli’s record as captain
Tests: 66, Won: 39, Lost: 16, Draw: 11, Wins Home: 24, Wins Away: 15
ODI: 95, Won: 65, Lost: 27, NR/Tied: 3
T20: 50, Won: 30, Lost: 16, Tie/NR: 4
These statistics are impressive by any standards. I have seen the likes of Azharuddin, Kapil Dev, Gavaskar, Ganguly & Dhoni. Never in my wildest dream did I imagine that an Indian captain can win 40 tests. There was a period when Azharuddin’s 14 wins was considered extraordinary but not anymore. Kohli has set a new standard. It will be hard for his replacement to match that stellar record.
However, was it all rosy for India under Kohli? Was his captaincy absolutely without any blemish? Scratch the surface, the picture will reveal a different story.
The other side of his legacy
Kohli has had some fabulous success in bi-lateral white ball series. The 6-1 win in South Africa in ODIs, the 5-0 win in New Zealand in T20s are some of the highlights but what about Tests?
Yes, Kohli has won 40 tests. That is mindboggling for an Indian captain. Having said that, 24 wins were in India. I do agree that Test wins are tough but India had long become an unstoppable force in India. Even the best of Australia or South Africa had only one series win. Most of the time, it was complete whitewash. 16 Test wins outside the country which includes wins in Sri Lanka and West Indies who have long stopped being competitive.
The countries that matter
Kohli had never won a series in countries that matter. SENA. The 2018 win in Australia does not really count because not only it was against a Warner-less and Smith-less Australia but it was achieved when Australia were at their lowest point. They lacked confidence and they just went through the motions. The 2021 win was achieved by Rahane. The only test Kohli captained in that series, India were humiliated. He also led the side in England, New Zealand and South Africa twice but wasn’t able to taste the sweetness of success in any of them though the latest series in England is led by India.
Ofcourse, he has won a couple of series in West Indies and in Sri Lanka but those wins pale into insignificance when measured against the bigger series. A team is either feted or forgotten based on the success of series wins in countries that matter. Steve Waugh, Ricky Ponting have not won a series in India (Gilchrist was the captain when Australia won in the early part of the millennium) but they succeeded in conquering the rest of the world. Graeme Smith has won a series in every country where he has captain except India. Not winning even a series in one country that matter is alright but not winning even one series in all the countries that matter will not be viewed kindly.
The ICC tournaments
The ICC tournaments is another that compounds his legacy. He has had 5 shots at ICC tournaments but did not manage to win a single trophy. This includes the WTC finals too.. Bi-lateral wins have long ceased to be considered important. The problem is further accentuated when Kohli failed to impose himself on those games. He failed with the bat during those important games.
Added to this is the fact the Kohli led RCB for 8 years and did not win a single IPL trophy. IPL cannot be considered to be on par with international cricket but not to win a single trophy is not ideal. Rohit Sharma has 3, Dhoni has 4, I mean people who have captained for a longtime, have trophies to show for but not Kohli.
The final straw was the T20 World Cup in 2021 that told the BCCI that enough is enough and it is time for a change.
Conclusion to what will Kohli’s legacy as captain be?
Kohli’s legacy as a captain is a mixed bag. He will always be remembered for increasing the fitness level of the Indian players, for promoting fast bowling as the main form of attack and for defending his players but at the same level, he will also be remembered for not winning a single test series in top countries and has not won a single ICC trophy despite an extremely long rope.
