IPL 2019: Rohit Sharma, MS Dhoni better IPL captains than Virat Kohli, says Gautam Gambhir
What’s the story?
Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir believes that Indian skipper Virat Kohli cannot be compared to Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni when it comes to captaincy. While Rohit and Dhoni have won four and three IPL titles respectively, Kohli hasn’t been able to lift the coveted trophy even once.
In case you didn’t know?
Royal Challengers Bangalore had another season to forget in the IPL and ended up with the wooden spoon with 11 points. On the other hand, Rohit and Dhoni faced off in the title clash with Mumbai Indians claiming their fourth title with a tense one-run win over Chennai Super Kings.
Gambhir has criticized Kohli’s captaincy in the IPL in the past as well, saying that Virat was lucky to continue as RCB captain despite not being able to lift the trophy even once in the past 7 years as captain.
The heart of the matter
Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Gambhir said, “I think he (Rohit) is probably right up there. He has won four IPL trophies and if you talk about IPL cricket, he is the most successful captain. He captained the team in Asia Cup and won it so he is probably next to Virat Kohli."
"And I have always maintained that you cannot compare Virat Kohli to Rohit Sharma or MS Dhoni. They are four-time and three-time champions (in the IPL) and you haven’t won the IPL. So from the captaincy point of view, you can’t compare them. He (Rohit) is right up there at the top now and I think the whole country knows about it.”
What’s next?
India kick-start their World Cup campaign against South Africa on June 5 at the Rose Bowl Cricket Ground in Southampton. It will be the first time Virat leads an Indian team at the ODI World Cup and a lot will depend on how he copes up with pressure situations.
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