Tag: #sports #cricket

Virat Kohli to quit as India’s T20 captain after the T20 world cup

Virat Kohli on Thursday announced he will step down as India’s T20 captain after the T20 World Cup in UAE but will continue to lead the side in ODIs and Test cricket.For some time, there has been speculation about Kohli’s future as white-ball captain especially in the backdrop of Rohit Sharma’s brilliant track record of winning five IPL titles for Mumbai Indians.

“I’ve decided to step down as the T20 captain after this T20 World Cup in Dubai in October,” Kohli said in a statement posted on his Twitter page. He further added “Understanding workload is a very important thing and considering my immense workload over the last 8-9 years playing all three formats and captaining regularly for last five to six years, I feel I need to give myself space to be fully ready to lead Indian team in Test and ODI cricket. I have given my everything to the Team during my time as T20 captain and I will continue to do so for the T20 team as a batsman moving forward.

Perhaps, for the first time in his captaincy career, Virat Kohli is feeling the heat. He is astute enough to see the writing on the wall where the backing for the captain by the powerful BCCI officials have diminished considerably in the last couple of months.since Sachin Tendulkar’s ODI retirement and Dhoni’s Test captaincy retirement were announced by the board’s press release) and explained the reasons behind quitting T20I captaincy. And largely you get his point, however, a deep look and putting it in the context of a power struggle in Indian cricket, there are many contradictions in his statement and it does appear that more than anything else, Kohli is trying his best to safeguard his own position as a dominant force in Indian cricket.

Virat announces this news through instagram

Is this workload behind the real reason for stepping down from T20I captaincy? Really? In the last decade, Kohli has played just 90 T20Is which is roughly 9 matches per year in the shortest format of the game. Definitely, not a huge workload if you consider that he plays around 15 matches of IPL every season inside two months, which, goes without saying the toughest on the body for any cricketer and all the more taxing for a captain. So, if someone who wants to keep himself fresh and fit, shouldn’t he be willing to give up his franchise’s captaincy (that he has not been able to lift a trophy in eight years for Royal Challengers Bangalore is a different story altogether) and sustain his India captaincy career in that format?

A very unselfish decision, says Michael Vaughan

Former England skipper Michael Vaughan has backed Virat Kohli’s decision to give up India’s T20 captaincy after the World Cup, saying that this will release some pressure off the superstar cricketer’s shoulders.

“Well Done… that’s a very unselfish decision and also one which will give you some nice space to hopefully relax a little away from all the pressures,” Vaughan replied on Kohli’s Instagram post.Kohli has a 27-14 win-loss ratio as India’s Twenty20 captain, while his Royal Challengers Bangalore team continue to chase their maiden IPL title.

Virat Kohli has yet to win a ICC trophy under his captaincy but the team’s series win under him in South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, England and West Indies will remain the highlights of his leadership tenure starting 2017.As of now, opener Rohit Sharma remains the frontrunner to replace Kohli as the captain of India in the shortest format. While the Indian cricket board is not in any hurry to name a successor now, Rohit, IPL’s most successful captain with 5 titles, is likely to be elevated as India’s Twenty20 skipper.

VIrat Kohli
Cricket
T20
India

India’s Historic win at Lords , defeated England by 151 runs.

A spirited performance from the Indian seamers heped the visitors beat England by 151 runs in the second Test and take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series on Monday. Chasing 272, England were bowled out for 120 in 51.5 overs with skipper Joe Root top-scoring with 33.

With about a half-hour left of a fractious day featuring regular verbal clashes between players, Mohammed Siraj bowled Jimmy Anderson and celebrated by removing the off stump he had just clattered and wheeling around the outfield in delight at the home of cricket. Mohammed Siraj registered the figures of 4/32 while Jasprit Bumrah scalped three wickets as India won for just the third time in their 19 Tests at Lord’s. With this win, the visitors have taken a 1-0 lead in this five-match series, after a rain-marred draw at Trent Bridge. The third Test at Headingley in Leeds starts on August 25.

Virat disappointed with his performance.

Kohli is yet to score a century since late 2019 and despite getting the start the Indian skipper has failed to play a big knock. The frustration of throwing away the start was made clear by the Team India skipper after returning to the dressing room. In the video uploaded by a cricket fan, Kohli can be seen throwing a towel and showing his frustration. Here’s the video of Kohli showing his frustration after getting out.

The last 10 innings of Virat Kohli in Test has not been great with the Indian skipper only managing to score 280 runs at a below-par average of 28. Kohli’s last century had come during India’s maiden pink-ball Test at home against Bangladesh in November 2019. The numbers of Virat Kohli’s in recent Tests have been not great. The Team India skipper has only managed to scores 20, 42, 0, 13, 44, 0, 27, 62, 0. In addition, to the mentioned scores he has now gone seven consecutive innings without a fifty in the longest format of the game.

Apart from failing to score big runs, Kohli was involved in an on-field heated argument with England pacer during Inia’s innings. The Kohli Anderson fight took place in the 17th over when Virat Kohli was at the non-strikers’ end. Virat Kohli not happy with James Anderson running on the pitch said something to Anderson which the stump mic caught. In the video which went viral on social media, Virat Kohli says to Anderson, “This is a pitch and you are running here, this isn’t your backyard.”

Some interesting facts about the win

  1. 3 Number of Test wins for India at Lord’s. Their previous two triumphs at this venue came 28 years apart – by five wickets in 1986 under Kapil Dev and by 95 runs in 2014 under MS Dhoni.
  2. 8 for 126 Mohammed Siraj’s bowling figures in this Test, the best match figures for an Indian bowler in at Lord’s. The previous best was 8 for 168 by Kapil Dev in 1982.
  3. 19 Wickets by Indian pacers in this Test match. Only twice did the Indian pacers claim more – all 20 against South Africa in Johannesburg in 2018 and against England in the previous Test at Trent Bridge
  4. The 180* was also the first of Root’s 22 Test centuries to end in a defeat. The record for the most Test centuries without one in a losing cause is held by Graeme Smith, with 27 tons. Wally Hammond, Geoff Boycott and Ian Bell share the second spot with 22 each.
  5. 7 Ducks by England batters in this Test, the joint-most by them in a Test. The Lord’s Test was the fifth instance where they recorded seven ducks, and the first since the Johannesburg Test against South Africa in 1999..

Virat Kohli doesn’t tolerate his teammates being bullied, he never forgives, says Monty Panesar

After dismissing Rishabh Pant early on the final day of the second Test at Lord’s, the English wanted to have a go at the Indian tailenders Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami. Mark Wood was the first one to have a real go, as he bowled a short-pitched delivery that hit Bumrah’s helmet. And, that’s how the altercation started. Apart from bowling a barrage of bouncers, the England cricketers began to sledge the Indian tailenders, Bumrah and Shami, in an effort to distract them. Jos Buttler was also one of the cricketers who exchanged words with Bumrah. But that didn’t affect the Indian pace duo, as they went on to forge a match changing 89-run stand for the ninth wicket and helped India set a 272-run target for the hosts.

When the England batsmen came out for the chase, Shami and Bumrah rocked the top-order, before Ishant Sharma (2/13) and Mohammed Siraj (4/32) dismantled the hosts’ to help India wrap up an unforgettable 151 run win to give India a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.As it was later confirmed by Virat Kohli, the fast bowlers were all extra charged up because of the way England went after Shami and Bumrah while they were batting. KL Rahul, the Man of the Match of the Lord’s Test, said after the match – “If you go after one of our guys that means you are going after the whole team”.

Former England spinner Monty Panesar feels the plans to target the Indian tailenders in that way would have been hatched by the England team management, but Joe Root’s men didn’t think that Virat Kohli remembers everything and wants to give it right back.

Cricket
india
England
Lords
Test match