5 Virat Kohli decisions that changed Indian cricket forever
Team India legend Virat Kohli is one of the most influential cricketers the world has seen. He is one of the most successful players that India has produced and has taken decisions that have had a wide-ranging impact over the years.
As captain of India, Kohli had an extremely successful tenure. In the 213 matches he led India across all three formats - Tests, ODIs and T20Is, he won 135 and lost 60. The rest of the matches were played out as drawn encounters.
Kohli enjoyed a winning percentage of 63 as captain, which was second only to the iconic Steve Waugh, Clive Lloyd and late Hansie Cronje. This goes to show that his decision-making was quite astute.
In this listicle, we take a look at five decisions from Kohli that changed Indian cricket.
#1 Prioritizing fitness and fielding
One of the biggest impacts Kohli has had in Indian cricket is by bringing a massive change in fitness and fielding. He took the mantle upon himself to ensure that the others followed him and did not complain that their skipper backed down.
Kohli was also instrumental in making sure that clearing fitness tests became the norm when he was captain. No player, despite their prior performances or potential talent was given a cushion to fall back upon.
As captain, Kohli brought back the Yo-Yo test, which players had to clear to get selected for the national team. This made the Indian team fitter and stronger than their opponents and invariably gave them an advantage in crunch situations.
#2 Unleashing Jasprit Bumrah in South Africa
Another major decision that Kohli took was unleashing Jasprit Bumrah in South Africa. There is no denying that he and head coach Ravi Shastri had planned intensely for this to happen in 2018. Shastri has even gone on record to state that he did not want the selectors to give Bumrah his Test debut in India.
This decision of Kohli and Shastri paid off rich dividends as Bumrah picked up fourteen wickets in the three Tests that series, coming behind just Mohammed Shami in the Indian ranks. Although India lost the series 1-2, it gave the world a glimpse of who Bumrah was and what he was to become.
#3 Creating a fast bowling culture
Another major decision that Kohli took while he was captain was to create an authentic fast-bowling culture. This made sure that India did not suffer when they went overseas and played in pace-friendly conditions in England, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
Kohli and the team think tank ensured that a battery of fast bowlers was prepared at the National Cricket Academy and that they got rotated to manage their workload. This group of fast bowlers made India appear strong against other countries in their own backyard and gave them the teeth to fight them.
The likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Shardul Thakur, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arzan Nagwaswalla, Prasidh Krishna etc were asked to prepare extensively and made to rotate evenly. This allowed those burnt out to get ample rest and the others to come in fresh.
#4 Developing Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal
Kohli played a big role in developing Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal (fondly known as KulCha) after the disappointing defeat in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 to Pakistan. The two wrist spinners were given a lot of exposure and the opportunity to showcase their wares.
Most importantly, Kohli, as captain, kept his faith in these two spinners despite them leaking runs at certain stages of their careers. It is well known that wrist spinners are a rare breed and that they have to be given confidence repeatedly. Kohli did that, and as a result, the duo are thriving today.
#5 Promoting Shardul Thakur as all-rounder
A big decision of Kohli's that changed the way Indian cricket viewed all-rounders also has to be mentioned here. This happened in India's tour of England in 2021, specifically in the final Test at the Oval. Kohli chose to go with four seamers on a traditionally spin-friendly surface.
Shardul Thakur, who was preferred over off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin in the playing XI, delivered a hammer blow to the English, first by scoring 57 and 60 in both innings and also contributing with three wickets in the match. This helped India win the game by 157 runs and take the curtailed series 2-1.