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Virat Kohli relinquishing Test captaincy after the South Africa series loss came as a shock to the cricketing world. After the retirement, there have been various congratulatory messages from current, former cricketers and Virat's family including his wife Anushka. While there have been several speculations regarding Kohli's captaincy after he was sacked as ODI captain last year, a report has surfaced that may shock many fans.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) wanted Kohli to bid farewell to captaincy after playing his 100th Test in the upcoming home series against Sri Lanka in Bengaluru, but at the last moment, Kohli did not agree to it and turned down the officials.
Had Virat Kohli wanted, he could have stepped down as Test captain after playing his 100th Test at his IPL home ground Bengaluru. If reports are to be believed, a senior BCCI official, on Friday (January 15) offered Kohli a farewell match as captain and one during a phone call. This happened when the 33-year-old had already taken the decision to leave Test captaincy. Kohli immediately refused this offer. India's most successful Test captain told the board official that one match does not matter, I am not like that.
This means that Kohli's highly successful tenure as Test captain ended in a series defeat as well. Something similar happened with former team captain MS Dhoni who, after playing 90 matches, ended his Test captaincy and career after a draw in the 2014 Melbourne Test.
Kohli, who scored two blazing centuries in his debut match as Test captain in Adelaide seven years ago, was looking to find some form in his final match as captain. The 33-year-old has averaged just 28.14 from January 2020.
The next captain
The BCCI is in no hurry to announce Kohli's successor. The decision will be taken before the Test series against Sri Lanka next month. The players being considered for captaincy are Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul. With Sharma as the designated vice-captain, it has been learned that the national selectors will only select him if they are sure that his body can endure the leadership role in all formats.
