Many people "wouldn't be able to digest it" if Virat Kohli got 50-60 Test wins under his captaincy - Ravi Shastri
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri said that Virat Kohli could have continued as Test captain for another two years, but also said that his decision should be respected.
Virat Kohli stepped down as India's Test captain after the series defeat in South Africa, a few months after he had quit the captaincy of the T20 Internationals and was subsequently stripped of the ODI captaincy.
Speaking to India Today, Shastri said:
"Whether Virat could have continued to lead India in Tests. For sure, he could have led India for at least 2 years because next two years India would be playing at home and who is coming over - 9 and 10 jacks, going by the rankings."
He said that Kohli could have ended up with 50 or 60 wins under his belt and that some people "would not be able to digest" that record.
"But he would have then made it to 50-60 wins under his captaincy and a lot of people will not be able to digest that fact."
He went on to praise Kohli's "incredible record."
"Two years, he could have carried on but we should respect his decision. In any other country, this kind of record is incredible. You won against Australia, England and lost 1-2 to South Africa but still, there are debates if he should be the captain or not."
He wants to focus on his batting - Ravi Shastri on Virat Kohli quitting captaincy
Ravi Shastri said the decision to quit the Test captaincy would have been his own as he held a fantastic record.
"Virat Kohli led India in 5-6 years in Tests and out of those, five years India was no. 1. No Indian captain has this kind of record and there are only a handful of captain world over with this kind of record."
"So when the most successful captain decides to step down as captain it's an individual's decision because his record of 40 wins is unprecedented."
He drew comparisons with the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni, saying they too quit the captaincy when they stopped enjoying the responsibility.
Shastri said:
"So he only knows how much is he enjoying captaincy. When Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni were not enjoying captaincy, they left."
"Similarly, when Virat thought that he had won 40 matches, six years he had been leading and now he wants to enjoy his cricket. He wants to focus on his batting and release a bit of pressure and it happens with a lot of individuals."
Shastri was the head coach for a long period during Kohli's tenure as captain and the two shared a great working bond, leading India to some memorable Test series wins especially.