“I cannot say with guarantee if Virat Kohli will win an ICC Trophy" - WV Raman
Former Indian cricketer WV Raman spoke about India's chances at the upcoming T20 World Cup. India are one of the favorites to win the tournament alongside England, New Zealand and the West Indies.
At the ‘Open Heart with Author’ online Zoom session, WV Raman was asked about skipper Virat Kohli's chances of leading the Indian team to an ICC title.
Raman noted how India have been impressive under Kohli across all formats, but he cannot say for certain if Kohli will guide the team to silverware.
“I cannot say with guarantee if Virat Kohli will win an ICC Trophy or not. The Indian team has performed well in each of the three formats under Kohli. If you look at it, this Indian team has very good chance in the T20 World Cup," he said.
He also cited the recent example of Novak Djokovic, who failed to win a medal at the Olympics, despite being at the top of his game in the recent past. Raman explained how the the shortest format is unpredictable.
“T20 is a format where no one is sure what would happen. Everything can change in just one over. That is the beauty of sport. You look at World No. 1 Djokovic (who won all the three Grand Slams so far this year), who could not win the bronze medal in the Tokyo Olympics He was in great form in tennis this year," the former India cricketer added.
India are well placed to win the T20 World Cup : WV Raman
India won their last ICC trophy back in 2013, when MS Dhoni led the team to a Champions Trophy win. Since then there has been a barrage of heart-wrenching eliminations in knock-out fixtures.
Virat Kohli has led India in three ICC events, but an ICC trophy as captain continues to elude him. Raman praised Kohli's captaincy record, which hovers around 60% across all formats.
He believes that India have a good chance of winning the upcoming T20 World Cup in the UAE.
"Who wins, whether Kohli wins, it is different. If you look at his captaincy record, he has a very good success record. India is well placed to win the T20 World Cup,” Raman added
India have been drawn against Pakistan, New Zealand and Afghanistan in the group stage of the event with two more teams set to enter. The T20 marquee event, which is being held after a five-year interval, will kick off shortly after the IPL.