New Delhi: With a win percentage of 60, Virat Kohli is currently the most successful Indian captain in Test cricket. His record in white-ball cricket is top-notch, but somehow, Kohli’s captaincy credentials in the Indian Premier League (IPL) has always been downwards.
Kohli has been leading the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the IPL since 2011. RCB have failed to qualify for playoffs and finished last in the league table twice. Former RCB coach Ray Jennings who worked from 2008 to 2013, has underlined Kohli’s mentality during the early days of captaincy and also opened up on Kohli’s struggles in the initial years of his leadership.
Jennings said the current RCB skipper backed the wrong players at times and there was a difference of opinion between him and Kohli when it came to selection which may have led to RCB’s failures in the past. “If I have to look back then I would say that in IPL there used to be 25-30 players (in the squad) and it was the coach’s duty to look after all the players. Sometimes he was a bit of a loner in the team,” Jennings was quoted as saying to Cricket.com
“Sometimes, he backed the wrong players. But, you can’t blame him for that. I wanted certain players to bowl or bat in certain conditions/situations but he had different ideas. See, IPL is very different from international cricket. In six weeks’ time, some players can pick form and some may go awry. So, someone in the group needs to be there all the time. When I was there certain players should have played more but he has different views.
“However, that is in the past and it’s nice to see him maturing day by day and he will start winning IPL trophies. We shouldn’t forget IPL is a game of small margins. He has made it to the semi-finals (playoffs) and final and he will definitely achieve a lot more success in the coming years. Sometimes, criticism is that he doesn’t enjoy time with the players. But, I can understand that since a captain has a lot on his plate. Also, the auction is a very important factor (in the team’s performance),” he said.
“Virat Kohli has always been an unbelievable cricket brain. He sets very high standards (for himself) and we went along despite one or two problems. You needed somebody around Virat to guide him (at that point in time). Of course, he and I bumped a few times but he is a good guy and a very quick learner. Nice to see him grow as a player and now as a captain. His mannerism is great. His best is yet to come,” Jennings added.
