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Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) star batter Virat Kohli has revealed why he decided to step down as captain during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021. Kohli said that the constant spotlight on his captaincy and batting became too much for him in the end and prompted him to take the decision in order to focus on his game.
"At one point, it did become really tough on me because there was too much happening in my career. I was captaining India for a period of 7-8 years, RCB for 9 years. There were expectations from me from batting perspective in every game that I played. I didn't have the sense that the attention is off me. If it wasn't captaincy, it was batting. I was always in the space where I was like -- what do I do? I was exposed to it like 24x7," Kohli said while speaking to presenter Mayanti Langer in RCB's podcast.
"And it did get very, very tough on me. It got too much in the end. That's why I stepped down because I felt like, if I’ve decided I want to be in this place, I need to be happy. I need to have a space in my life where I can just come and play my cricket without being judged or looked at 'What is he going to do this season?', 'what is going to happen now?'" he explained.
Kohli's record as RCB captain
Kohli captained RCB in 143 games. He has a win percentage of 46.15. The closest he came to the IPL trophy as captain was in the 2016 edition where he scored a record-breaking 973 runs including four centuries. RCB lost to David Warner-led Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in a high-scoring final. He also led RCB in the absence of Faf du Plessis in the 2023 edition.
Why Kohli didn't leave RCB?
Kohli is the only player who has played for just one franchise in 18 seasons so far. The 36-year-old recalled the period from 2016 to 2019 when he was at his prime. He recalled getting suggestions to move to a different franchise but decided against it.
“I did think about it, not out of temptation, but reflection. I asked myself — what is more valuable? A new challenge or the bond I’ve built here?” Kohli recalled.
"What's more important is the relationship and the mutual respect over so many years, and I'm going to see it through now. This is my home. The love I have received from RCB fans, I don't think any trophy can come anywhere close to it."
Kohli in sublime form
Meanhile, Kohli has scored 505 runs from 11 games this season at an average of 63.13, including seven half-centuries. RCB are sitting at the top of the points table with eight wins from 11 games.
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