BENGALURU: With both hands on his hips, followed by a deep breath, Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Virat Kohli took the first postmatch question on Monday. The disappointment, after their exit from IPL 2021, was, writ large on his face and rightly so. He has multiple records as an IPL batsman, but as a captain... zero titles. And the 2021 edition was the last chance for the 32-yearold to break the title duck under his captaincy but a four-wicket loss to Kolkata Knight Riders in Sharjah quashed his dreams.
After Kohli announced his decision to step down from captaincy at the end of the season, it might have been a perfect dose of motivation for his players to win it for Kohli. They reached the play-offs with nine wins from 14 games. One could sense a change in fortunes. But, winning is a habit and that is something Bangalore has not been acquainted with over the years in big games under Kohli. Here are some instances: 2016 final loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad and eliminator finish in 2020 and 2021.
Kohli took over as skipper officially in 2013, and they have finished in all positions from two to eight on the table in different seasons, barring number one, which has led to some serious questions. Is Kohli a poor captain or is it the players who have failed to deliver for him? Blaming the players might not be right as he has had the likes of Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers, Mitchell Starc, Shane Watson and Glenn Maxwell at different times. Most often than not, these players have stood up.
If any, their bowling department in the past has been questionable. One also has to note that India has also not won a single ICC event under his captaincy. So, this opens up a wider debate on his tactical acumen as well. For instance, against Kolkata in a crunch eliminator, when the spinners were doing relatively well, he did not throw the ball to Shahbaz Ahmed. Such decision making has been well documented.
One can also question the core team management as De Villiers did not face many balls coming down at five or six in the second leg. It may be a collective decision, but the kind of influence Kohli has, it is unlikely if anyone would disagree with his call. Coming to his batting, he has always been on top of his game. After assuming the skipper’s role, his 359 runs in the 2014 season has been his lowest. The right-hander, who scored an astonishing 973 in 2016, has led from the front most of the editions.
But the last two editions, including the ongoing one, his strike rate of 121 and 119 suggests that the pressure of trophyless seasons was also getting to him. “All I can say is that I’ve given my best. I don’t know how the response has been to that, but I can vouch for the fact that I have given my 120 percent to this franchise every year, leading the team.
I will continue to give that effort on the field as a player from now on. It’s a great time to regroup, restructure the franchise for the next three years, and bring in people who can take this culture and this franchise to the next level, moving forward,” said Kohli, who wants to play for the franchise till he calls it a day in the IPL. Kohli might have failed as Bangalore captain, but the management needs to have a clean slate and look forward to the allimportant mega auction.