Can Virat Kohli keep ODI captaincy for long? The existential question looms!

But
on
Thursday
(September
16),

Kohli
imposed
a
challenge
on
himself
while
announcing
his
decision
to
quit
India
T20I
captaincy
post
the
ICC
T20
World
Cup
in
October.
It
is
not
merely
winning
the
T20
World
Cup
and
add
that
elusive
silverware
to
his
otherwise
impeccable
CV.

The
challenge
is
more
existential
in
nature
for
Captain
Kohli.
Will
he
be
able
to
keep
India’s
ODI
captaincy
if
India
fails
to
land
the
title
in
the
UAE?
It
is
a
big
question
and
the
BCCI
top
brass
might
already
be
thinking
on
those
lines.

ALSO
READ:
INDIA’S
T20I
CAPTAINCY
OPTIONS

Kohli
has
a
brilliant
track
record
as
captain
in
bilateral
cricket,
and
in
fact
it
is
better
than
any
other
previous
Indian
captain
including
MS
Dhoni,
the
most
successful
of
them
all
with
three
ICC
titles
under
his
belt.

But
when
it
comes
to
the
global
events,
Kohli
does
not
shine
through
as
India’s
campaigns
under
him
in
the
ICC
Champions
Trophy
2017,
50-over
World
Cup
2019
and
WTC
Final
2021
ended
dry.
The
final
and
semifinal
appearances
in
those
tournaments
are
creditworthy
in
isolation
but
lack
of
titles
stick
out
as
a
sore
thumb
particularly
after
a
successful
era
under
Dhoni.

Pencil
in
his
barren
run
in
the
IPL
as
the
Royal
Challengers
Bangalore
captain,
if
you
wish!

By
relinquishing
the
T20I
captaincy,
Kohli
has
underlined
his
desire
to
keep
the
ODI
and
Test
leadership
role
with
him.
It
is
perfectly
understandable
as
the
50-over
World
Cup
is
coming
to
India
in
2023
and
Kohli
might
be
dreaming
of
a
tilt
at
the
title
at
home.
It
is
an
undeniably
hard
to
resist
temptation,
not
just
for
Kohli
but
for
any
captain.

ALSO
READ:
BCCI
REACTS
TO
KOHLI’S
DECISION

But
will
the
BCCI
bigwigs
be
keen
to
continue
with
Kohli
if
he
once
again
falters
as
captain
in
an
ICC
event?
Or
will
they
be
eager
to
hand
over
Kohli’s
successor
the
reins
of
ODI
team
too
and
give
him
time
to
build
his
team
and
put
in
place
the
plans
ahead
of
the
mega
event?

Kohli
will
have
to
script
his
own
future
here.
Kohli
has
never
been
an
intuitive
captain
in
the
white
ball
formats
where
you
need
to
adapt
the
thinking
process
as
the
game
unfolds
in
quick
reels.
In
those
formats,
especially
in
T20,
a
captain
needs
to
find
that
sort
of
personnel
who
can
execute
his
plans
and
Kohli
has
not
unlocked
the
combo
till
now.

Kohli
is
more
at
ease
in
Test
cricket
where
he
can
shape
his
thoughts
and
strategies
over
five
days,
and
even
succeed
with
pre-meditated
plans
and
can
have
the
comfort
of
seeking
inputs
from
the
backroom
staff
as
and
when
he
requires.
It
is,
perhaps,
one
reason
why
Kohli
has
been
insistent
on
a
set
of
coaching
staff
with
whom
he
has
greater
synergy.

However,
new
coaches
might
walk
in
after
the
T20
World
Cup
while
Kohli’s
feedback
will
be
sought
in
the
process
it
is
hard
to
imagine
that
he
will
have
an
absolute
say
in
it
as
it
was
in
the
past.
The
BCCI
will
certainly
draft
in
the
opinion
of
the
new
T20I
captain
too.

It
was
evident
in
Kohli’s
announcement
too
when
he
worded
in
Rohit
Sharma
as
a
part
of
the
leadership
group.
It
is
somewhat
of
an
admission
from
Kohli’s
part
that
Rohit
will
takeover
the
mantle
from
him
in
the
not-so-distant
future,
and
he
is
mentally
preparing
for
the
shift.

Rohit
has
all
the
credentials
too.
He
has
led
India
occasionally
in
the
absence
of
Kohli
and
fetched
two
multi-team
competition
titles
in
2018
–
the
Asia
Cup
and
the
Nidahas
Trophy.
The
Mumbaikar
also
led
Mumbai
Indians
to
five
IPL
titles
and
one
Champions
Trophy
triumph
and
he
has
evolved
as
an
all-format,
all-weather
batsman
in
recent
years.

It
is
too
bright
a
picture
to
paper
over,
and
Kohli’s
parched
record
in
multi-team
events
made
it
even
more
exigent.
A
stumble
by
Kohli
in
the
T20
World
Cup
might
just
hasten
that
swing
in
power
and
set
in
that
split
captaincy
in
its
true
sense.