‘When I Left Test Captaincy, Only MS Dhoni Messaged Me’: Virat Kohli
‘When I Left Test Captaincy, Only MS Dhoni Messaged Me’: Virat Kohli. Before the Asia Cup, there was a lot of talk about how well Virat Kohli would play. However, the former captain’s one-month break has done him a world of good, and he is now playing at his best in the sub-continental tournament. So far, 154 runs have been scored by the right-handed batter in three games. His best score was 60, which he got against Pakistan in the Super 4 stage on Sunday. The game was a nail-biter, and Team India lost by five wickets. They will now play Sri Lanka on Tuesday at the same place.
Kohli’s say at the press conference.
After the game, Kohli attended a press conference where he said that only MS Dhoni texted him when he stepped down as captain of the Test team in January of this year. He also talked about how he sees things and how it’s best to give advice one-on-one instead of in front of the whole world.
“When I left Test captaincy, I only received a message from one person and I have played with that person in the past. That person is MS Dhoni, anyone else did not message me. Many people have my number, and there are many people who give me suggestions on the TV. There was just MS Dhoni who messaged me, many people have my number, but they did not text me. When you have genuine respect and connection with someone, you are able to see that because there is security from both sides,” said Kohli during a post-match press conference.
“I don’t want anything from him and he does not want anything from me. I was never insecure from him and he was never of me. I can just say that if I want to say something to someone, I will reach out individually. Even if you want to help. If you want to give a suggestion to me in front of the TV or the whole world, it does not hold any value to me. You can talk 1-1, I see things with utmost honesty. It is not like I do not care, but you see the things how they are. God gives you everything, only God helps you achieve success and it is all in his hands,” he further added.
The “former” captain
After the World Cup, Kohli stepped down as T20 captain. In the same year, he was removed as ODI captain because the selectors wanted the same captain for all white-ball formats. Then, after losing a series to South Africa, Kohli stepped down as Test captain.
Ind-Pak Thriller
In the 18th over of the innings, Arshdeep Singh dropped a crucial catch, which turned out to be the deciding factor in the game against Pakistan.
Talking about this moment, Kohli said: “Anyone can commit the mistake, the situation was tight. It was a high-pressure game and mistakes can happen. I still remember I was playing my first Champions Trophy and the match was against Pakistan, I had played a very bad shot against Shahid Afridi. I was watching the ceiling till 5 am, I was not able to sleep and I thought my career is over but these things are natural. Seniors players get around you, there is a good team environment right now, I give the credit to the captain and coach. The players learn from their mistakes. So one must accept his mistake, address it and look forward to being in that pressure situation once again.”
On Hardik and Sky
Talking about Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav, the former skipper said: “Both Hardik and Suryakumar Yadav have been brilliant. Hardik has realised his potential fully. From the IPL that happened this time around, he has become a different character, very responsible and very aware of his abilities. That is the difference I see, he realises what he can do as an all-rounder and he is working as hard as I have ever seen him. To play like this and get back to full bowling fitness will be a massive factor. And Suryakumar, I do not think there are hardly any players in world cricket who can play like that, once he gets going, he can take the game away.”