CHENNAI: Eight seasons. Zero titles. Number of matches lost (47) > matches won (44). These numbers don’t make for good reading for any captain. But this is how Royal Challengers Bangalore have performed under Virat Kohli. Seasons have come and gone, players have come and gone and so have the coaches. But Kohli, the captain, has remained.
In a meet where franchises change captains if runs or results go dry, Kohli is an exception. None of the team owners have shown as much patience as those of Bangalore’s when it comes to retaining the skipper. In fact, Bangalore, under Kohli have only made it to the playoffs only thrice in eight years.
Bangalore may have not even thought of looking beyond Kohli as captain. The argument is Kohli is not only their best player, but as a brand, he brings more to the franchise. Despite not winning titles, it’s understood Bangalore still remain one of the revenue-making franchises partly because of Kohli.
Saying that, there is the need to take into account his performance with the bat. Be it as India captain or at RCB, Kohli has thrived under responsibility. As captain, he has scored runs and averages more than any top player. Also as a senior player, his role as a mentor in the team is being highlighted.
It’s one reason why the franchise loath to remove him as skipper. On Saturday, RCB head coach Simon Katich, when asked about Kohli’s captaincy, mentioned how he has mentored Devdutt Padikkal this season.
“I think what we’ve seen is someone that’s highly professional, someone that’s very, very well-respected by the group here, and not just for what he does on the field. (He) spent a lot of time around the group, in the team room, and socialising with everyone — and we saw someone that is very invested in this group, spent a lot of time with the younger players, particularly when we paired him up with young Padikkal as a mentor. And we saw the growth in him throughout the tournament, having that time speaking batting with Virat Kohli is invaluable for his growth, and that’s the side a lot of people don’t see with Virat,” Katich said.
So far with the national side, Kohli hasn’t had any competition to the captain’s throne. But with every season without a title, comparisons have already started with Rohit Sharma.
Rohit has already won a record four IPL titles since 2013 and is on the verge of lifting a fifth with Mumbai Indians.
Whenever he has stepped in as stand-in captain in Kohli’s absence, Rohit has been more successful with the national side, and has even lifted Asia Cup without losing a match in 2018.
The previous selection panel under MSK Prasad believed there was no need for split captaincy, but Rohit is making a strong case to take over in limited-overs.
India’s next big assignment is the T20 World Cup in 2021 at home and it is fair to say Kohli’s position is safe until then. By then another IPL would have come and gone.
If Kohli doesn’t win the IPL title in 2021, then the selectors may be under pressure to usher in change.