Virat Kohli Should Not Be Rushed Into Captaincy In All Formats: Sunil Gavaskar
Virat Kohli has been in fine form in all formats for the last one year and with Mahendra Singh Dhoni suffering a dip in form, there are calls for Kohli to become the skipper in all three formats.
Highlights
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Virat Kohli is the leading run-getter for RCB in the 2016 IPL.
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Kohli has smashed a record two centuries in IPL 2016 so far
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Sourav Ganguly said MS Dhoni must hand T20I and ODI captaincy to Kohli
Virat Kohli should not be rushed into limited overs captaincy in spite of being the best batsman in this format in the past one year, says Sunil Gavaskar.
In Twenty20 Internationals in 2015/16, he is averaging 95.57 while in the current Indian Premier League, Kohli is the leading run-getter with 561 runs in nine games.
Kohli has been breaking IPL records too. He erased Sachin Tendulkar's name from the record books by becoming the first captain to score 500-plus runs in three separate seasons. He has smashed two centuries for Royal Challengers Bangalore, making him the first captain in IPL history to do this.
In ODIs played during 2015/16, he has scored 626 runs at an average of 62.6 with three centuries. In Tests, Kohli's captaincy has gotten off to a great start with a series win away to Sri Lanka as well as a 3-0 series win over South Africa at home.
With Kohli in such a rich vein of form, former India skipper Sourav Ganguly has lavished praise on the dashing right-hander and believes it is time for MS Dhoni to hand over the ODI and T20I captaincy to Kohli.
"Kohli is getting better every time. He is probably the best in the world in terms of consistency. His mental energy, tenacity is unreal. His attitude on the field is superb. His record as Test captain has been good," Ganguly had said.
However, former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar has cautioned that Kohli must be given time.
Speaking to NDTV on Tuesday, Gavaskar said, "Virat should not be rushed into captaincy in all formats. Let him grow into this role... 2019 World Cup is far away."
Kohli-led RCB are currently in sixth place with eight points from nine games and must win all their remaining games in order to qualify for the knock-outs.
Bowlers Let Down Royal Challengers Bangalore
RCB's bowlers have been woeful in the 2016 Indian Premier League. In all nine matches, they have conceded a total in excess of 170 . In the entire tournament, they have used a total of 13 bowlers, with 11 of them having an economy rate of over 10.
Shane Watson is their best bowler with an economy rate of 7.94 while Yuzvendra Chahal, the leg spinner, is next with 8.75. Gavaskar pointed out that the bowling had let the team down.
"Bowlers have let Bangalore down in IPL. Kohli is as good as his team," Gavaskar stated.
The brilliance of Kohli and AB de Villiers have ensured that RCB stay in the hunt for the play-offs but for the team to be more effective, the bowling has to come to the fore.