“He is ready to take on the mantle of Test cricket” - When Sunil Gavaskar backed Virat Kohli as captain in 2012
Former India batter Sunil Gavaskar had vouched for Virat Kohli's leadership ability within a year of his Test debut, over a decade ago. The right-hander had a tough start to red-ball cricket in his maiden series against the West Indies away from home, but slowly grew from strength to strength to eventually cement the iconic No.4 position and become the backbone of the side.
Kohli's leadership traits were evident from his early days, when he led India to the title in the 2008 U-19 World Cup. Seven of his first eight Test matches came away from home, which included a challenging tour of Australia as well. He passed the baptism by fire, and flourished in the following home season.
He had a lean run during the home series against England in 2012, and India were fighting to avoid a series loss after squandering a 1-0 lead. In the series finale in Nagpur, Kohli scored a fighting hundred, sharing a mammoth partnership with MS Dhoni on a bonafide rank turner in Nagpur.
While the match was drawn and England claimed the series, the knock was acclaimed, with Sunil Gavaskar being one of the admirers of the sheer quality as well as the temperament.
"Till the fourth day of the Nagpur Test, I would have backed Dhoni. Now that Virat has come up with a hundred under trying circumstances where he curbed his natural game, he discovered a good part about himself," Gavaskar told NDTV in 2012.
"He is ready to take on the mantle of Test cricket [captain]. That needs to be looked at in a positive manner by everyone concerned, as that is where the future lies," he added.
Kohli took charge of the Test team exactly two years after the statement by Sunil Gavaskar. The ace batter was given the responsibility of leading the red-ball side at just 25 years of age following MS Dhoni's unavailability and eventually unprecedented retirement from the format.
Virat Kohli evolved into the greatest Indian Test captain of all time
Kohli imparted his vision for the team from his very first match as captain. He promoted aggression and a positive mentality as he orchestrated a bold fourth innings run chase in Adelaide during the 2014-15 Border-Gavaskar series opener. Despite falling agonizingly short, the approach was welcomed, and bigger things were on the horizon.
The skipper prioritized overseas performances and helped develop a pace bowling attack to meet the demand. He stepped down as Test captain in early 2022, and ended up with 40 wins in 68 outings. His win percentage read an impressive 58.8 percent, as his record included only 11 losses.