By As India celebrated the historic Test series win over Australia, their 2nd in a row, there were a few that deemed it fit to criticise captain Virat Kohli. The right-handed batsman had taken a paternity leave after the first Test, and Ajinkya Rahane was given the charge to lead the team Down Under in the remaining Tests. But while Rahane is being praised for his quiet leadership, many are also pointing it out if the Mumbai cricketer should replace Kohli at the helm in the longest format.
India bowling coach Bharat Arun responded to Kohli’s critics and said that people tend to forget what he has done for the team during his time as captain.
“First thing, I would like to congratulate Ajinkya Rahane for the magnificent job he did in Australia. But to the people who are writing against Virat Kohli, I would just like to put up one stat for them. Out of the 20 series that he has captained, he has won 14 series for India. Which means the percentage of win record is over 70%,” Arun told Sports Today.
“If you look at captains across all formats, Virat Kohli’s record has to be one of the best ever. All Blacks (New Zealand Rugby team) has about an 80 percent success rate, so after them, Virat Kohli’s record is 2nd across all sports. People who tend to write about him have forgotten what he has done over the years. What has Virat not done? The fitness culture he has brought into the team. Fast bowlers, fielding have all gone up under him,” he added.
“Yes, Rahane has done a magnificent job, he’s an outstanding team man. When Virat Kohli is there, he does a pretty good job as vice-captain, he goes and suggests things to Virat and Virat is also very open to suggestions,” he further said.
Arun described India’s brand of cricket as “fearless” and credited Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri for instilling the mindset in the players.
“Absolutely, I would like to sum it up this way. This Indian team is absolutely fearless and brutally honest. These are the qualities that are necessary for a team to do well. And there are two men who have gone and brought about this change. It is Ravi Shastri and Virat Kohli,” he said.
India retained the Border Gavaskar Trophy with a 2-1 series win over Australia after picking a memorable win in the 4th Test in Brisbane. It was Australia’s first defeat in 32 years at Gabba.
