Virat Kohli – The Great Indian Promise
With Dhoni shepherding Kohli from behind the stumps, Indian cricket is in safe hands
As Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the former Indian national cricket team’s limited-overs formats captain, relinquished his post, making way for Virat Kohli on January 4, the young maestro is now entrusted with the responsibility of driving a billion hopes in all three versions of cricket.
Ever since Virat Kohli was appointed the vice-captain of the Indian cricket team for One Day Internationals (ODIs) in 2012, and became the test captain following Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s test retirement in 2014, he has not only added numerous records to his swelling kitty but has also garnered fan following and appreciation, matched only by the stalwarts of yesteryear.
Some of the most phenomenal records, including the fastest ODI century, fastest to 5,000 ODI runs, fastest to 10 ODI centuries, and many others, belong to Kohli. He is also the second batsman in the world to have scored 1,000 or more ODI runs for four consecutive calendar years.
Among the Twenty20 (T20) world records held by Kohli are fastest to 1,000 runs, most runs in a calendar year and most fifties in the format. He also holds the records of most runs in a single tournament of both the T20 world cup and the Indian Premier League (IPL). He is the only batsman in the world to average more than 50 across all formats of international cricket.
However, the journey does not end here. After crossing so many milestones in his career already, Kohli has now taken over from Dhoni as India’s limited-overs captain as well, becoming the leader in all three formats of the game.
Under his leadership, India has already won 14 of the 22 test matches, enjoyed its longest-ever unbeaten streak of 18 matches and has also grabbed the number one position in the ICC test rankings.
However, Kohli’s focus now shifts to the shorter formats where the world has seen him dominate bowling attacks and craft India’s chases with the surgical precision. At an age of 26, when most people find it tough to stamp their authority in their professions, Kohli has scaled the pinnacle and blazed a trail difficult to follow.
And, with Dhoni guiding him on the field, this coordination between the ex-captain and his successor shall only enhance India’s chances further of dominating the cricketing world and creating a daylight between them and their rivals.
