Soon after Virat Kohli made a sensational announcement of quitting Team India T20 captaincy, another chorus started doing the round that the 32-year-old should step down from the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) leadership role, too, as the "workload" in the Indian Premier League (IPL) is "no less" than any international event.
It is learnt that Kohli might quit RCB captaincy if the team fails to win the title this time.
A former BCCI official told IANS: "What kind of announcement was that from Virat? Do you understand...Workload problem solved?"
"I read somewhere that post-pandemic break since December, 2020, India have played just eight T20s. IPL k matches jyada khel liye honge I guess (Must have played more IPL matches since then).
"Captaincy in the IPL is no easy thing. I mean look at the intensity of each tournament. It is crazy. The demand of winning (from franchises) is beyond explanation.
"So, will Kohli step down as the RCB captain? By still leading in all the three formats (Test, ODI and RCB in IPL), the work-load question is still not resolved," he added.
For all his stunning success as a batsman, Virat can never claim to have mastered the art of captaincy in white-ball cricket, especially in T20s. His decision to step down as T20 captain though has the hallmark of a perfectly timed cover drive.
If India lift the T20 World Cup, it would ensure he leaves on a high. If India miss out on the title, then he avoids facing the aggressive clamour asking for his removal as captain that would have surely followed. Yet there is one uproar that continues and which Kohli will have to face before the T20 World Cup-his status as the captain of the RCB.
Kohli's record as RCB captain is poor. Having taken over the RCB captaincy full-time in 2013, he hasn't been able to deliver a single title and took them to just one final.
Last season, RCB qualified for the play-offs for the first time since 2016, but they suffered five straight defeats at the end. In 2019 and 2017, RCB finished at the bottom of the table; they were sixth in 2018.
After the 973-run blockbuster season in 2016, Kohli has aggregated 500-plus runs just once, in 2018. In the ongoing edition, he averages 33 with one half-century after seven games.
One of the biggest criticisms of Kohli has been his decision-making that has played a major role in deciding the outcome of India's campaign at the ICC events.
Sections
