"Might just have been a case of luck" - Salman Butt on Virat Kohli's captaincy record in ICC tournaments
Former Pakistan opener Salman Butt believes that Virat Kohli should not be labeled a "failed captain" simply because he didn't win a senior ICC title during his reign.
Butt said that only individuals unfamiliar with the game will rate a skipper's performance based on the number of ICC trophies he has won. He pointed out that it was just a question of losing a high-pressure game or bad luck.
"People who do not understand the game of cricket very well judge a captain's performance based on how he has fared in the Champions Trophy or the World Cup," Butt explained while speaking on his YouTube channel. "However, if you have a good win percentage and are tactically very strong, but haven't won a big tournament, it wouldn't be fair to say that you haven't been a good captain.
"There might have been a few mistakes in high-pressure games, or it might just have been a case of luck. Not winning an ICC tournament doesn't tell us that he [Virat Kohli] wasn't a strong leader."
Notably, during an appearance on Royal Challengers Bangalore's (RCB) podcast, Virat Kohli spoke about how he was termed a failed captain by many for not leading Team India to an ICC trophy win.
The former Indian skipper led the country in a total of 213 matches across formats, winning 135 of them. Under his captaincy, the team reached the final of the ICC Champions Trophy in 2017, the semi-final of the ICC ODI World Cup in 2019, and the World Test Championship (WTC) final in 2021.
"Won a lot of matches and even overseas series" - Salman Butt on Virat Kohli's captaincy stint
Comparing Babar Azam and Virat Kohli's leadership skills, Salman Butt stated that the Pakistani skipper still needs to improve in certain areas. He opined that Kohli, on the other hand, led India brilliantly, especially in red-ball cricket.
The 38-year-old also highlighted how during Kohli's tenure, the Indian side were able to secure a number of momentous victories in overseas conditions, adding:
"There is still some scope for improvement in Babar Azam's captaincy. When you look at how Virat Kohli led his side in Tests, it was fantastic. He won a lot of matches and even overseas series. However, he couldn't win a final. When such a thing happens, it seems at times that the team hasn't been able to win a final because of him."
Virat Kohli opens up about Team India and ICC tournament failures as a captain. 🧢🇮🇳
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It is worth mentioning that Virat Kohli is India's most successful Test captain with 40 wins to his name from 68 matches. Furthermore, he has won 65 out of the 95 ODIs he has captained in. He has 30 T20I wins from 50 matches.