New Delhi. After the removal of Virat Kohli from the captaincy of the ODI team, it should be understood that the captaincy of the Indian team is always indefinite. When you are in this position, you have all the power but it is also true that you can be removed from this post at any time.
According to the statistics, India has removed its most successful ODI captain from the captaincy. To the 33-year-old captain who had expressed his desire to continue as captain in ODIs and Tests after relinquishing the captaincy of the T20 International team three months ago. Moreover, this change has not been made keeping in mind the long term future as the new captain is one and a half year older than the old captain.
When before in India the captaincy was handed over to a cricketer of this age – Anil Kumble was given the captaincy at the age of 37. Although that decision was also not long-term, but there were many logical reasons behind it. This appointment became necessary after the resignation of Rahul Dravid and MS Dhoni leading the way in shorter format cricket. One thing is certain that what is happening now is done by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
Any change in captaincy in Indian cricket must be confirmed by the Board President. So, right now the selectors and the BCCI president clearly believe that the previous captain in Indian cricket, under whom India has won five matches every two matches compared to losing every two matches, led the team to the finals and semi-finals of two ICC tournaments, A better captain than me.
It is also possible that the selectors and the BCCI may have set the criteria in some other way than the numbers. In all tournaments except the T20 World Cup, you would expect them to enter the semi-finals keeping in mind the standard of the Indian team. Under the captaincy of Virat Kohli, the team has entered the knockout stage with great ease. Under Virat’s leadership, India took the bold step of dropping two of their biggest match-winners, the two-finger spinners, but they delayed it. They were the only team in the 2017 Champions Trophy without a wrist spinner. Who was responsible for this, it will never be known.
The 2019 World Cup was more disappointing. In early 2018, Ajinkya Rahane was considered as India’s No. However, Dhoni’s assessment of Rahane was that he struggles after the powerplay and the ball gets old. Ambati Rayudu came in his place but was dropped after a simple series just before the World Cup. During the World Cup, the Indian team had a back-up all-rounder who had no prior experience of anchoring the innings in ODIs. Also there was a wicket-keeper batsman in the team, who was not the first choice. The fate of the team did not favor him and in a crucial match, all the responsibility fell on this middle order.
Of course, the selectors and the BCCI need not give any such explanation as Virat had already decided his fate by quitting the T20 captaincy. It is the right decision to have one person lead the limited overs team. Virat’s captaincy was in doubt in the T20 format. His record as captain in IPL was not very special and the roles of players in Team India were not clear. Rohit has clear roles and plans for his players in the team and he uses data as well. Virat walks on emotions whereas Rohit does not give space to emotions.
If this was the reasoning behind this decision then why did BCCI take two and a half years to take this decision after 2019? Virat’s bat not playing can probably be the reason behind this decision. Which justifies what was said in this advertisement of Yuvraj Singh somewhere. “The world is yours as long as the bat is running.” When Dhoni’s bat was not running in 2017, there were similar situations with him but then Dhoni himself stepped down from his post and when this happened with Virat, he had faith in his ODI captaincy, believed in himself and he did this. refused to leave the position.
It’s never easy. Although it is clear that Virat did not want to leave the captaincy, due to which the new captain of the team may have some discomfort in captaining. These ambitious players have reached here without any doubt. The success of the team environment of which Virat is proud will depend on the maturity he grows from here. Yes, we respect each other’s ambitions, now it’s just a matter of how mature we are to handle this situation.
Coach Rahul Dravid has been in a similar situation in the past as well when the BCCI last sacked the Indian captain. However, this time the matter is a bit different. The Test captaincy is still with Virat. Virat still has a great record and fitness. Captain Virat has been very supportive of Rohit Sharma as a batsman in the past; There is no doubt that when Virat is in the team as a batsman, Rohit will also support him. Most importantly, India are a hugely successful team across all formats, even if they were knocked out in the Super 12 from the T20 World Cup. It is also important that Rohit gets enough matches and time so that he can build a strong team for the 2023 World Cup. Still, this is a change that needs to be handled properly and Dravid, Virat and Rohit can overcome it. can.
