5 key developments and reactions following Virat Kohli’s exit as ODI captain

Virat Kohli fans were in for a massive shock on Wednesday when the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that Rohit Sharma would be the new ODI captain. The cricket board informed the same while naming the Test squad for the tour of South Africa.

Kohli had already quit the T20I captaincy after the T20 World Cup 2021. Rohit, who was named the new skipper in the shortest format, recently led India to a 3-0 series triumph against New Zealand at home. However, Kohli was keen to continue as captain in ODIs and Test matches.

While the BCCI has retained Kohli as Test captain, Rohit will henceforth be the white-ball skipper as Indian cricket’s leadership has been officially split. Rohit’s first assignment as full-time ODI captain will be the three-match series in South Africa.

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End of Virat Kohli’s reign as ODI captain: The aftermath

In the wake of the ODI leadership being taken away from Kohli, we take a look at some important developments in the matter and reactions from some members of the cricketing fraternity.

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#1 Had requested Kohli not to step down as T20 captain: Ganguly

BCCI president Sourav Ganguly (left) and Virat Kohli.

Breaking his silence on Indian cricket’s latest captaincy saga, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly on Thursday revealed that the cricket board had requested Kohli not to step down as T20I captain.

However, once Kohli made up his mind to give up leadership in the shortest format, there was no point in having two separate captains for the two Indian white-ball cricket teams.

Speaking to ANI, Ganguly confirmed:

“It's a call that the BCCI and the selectors took together. Actually, the BCCI had requested Virat to not step down as the T20I skipper but obviously, he did not agree. And the selectors then did not feel it right to have two different captains for two white-ball formats. So it was decided that Virat will continue as Test captain and Rohit will take over as the white-ball captain.”

The BCCI president said that both him and chairman of selectors Chetan Sharma had personally spoken to Kohli about the matter.

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#2 BCCI waited for 48 hours for Kohli to quit ODI leadership: Reports

Virat Kohli failed to win an ICC trophy as limited-overs captain. Pic: Getty Images

According to a report in PTI, Kohli’s days as limited-overs leader were all but over once India were dumped out of the T20 World Cup in the Super 12 round. However, the board wanted to hand Kohli an honorable exit and hence gave him 48 hours to voluntarily step down from ODI leadership. When he didn’t, the BCCI decided to take the big call.

While announcing the team for the Test series against South Africa, the BCCI informed:

“The All-India Senior Selection Committee also decided to name Mr Rohit Sharma as the Captain of the ODI & T20I teams going forward.”

Rohit was also named vice-captain for the Tests, replacing Ajinkya Rahane even though the latter kept his place in the team as a batter.

Coming back to Kohli, the report claimed that the former ODI and T20I skipper was not the most popular man in the Indian dressing room. The report quoted a player (unnamed) who had been of the Indian team a couple of years back, as saying:

"The biggest problem with Virat has always been trust issues. He speaks about clear communication but where he had lost respect as a leader is lack of communication."

Meanwhile, on Thursday, the BCCI posted an appreciation tweet for Kohli, describing him as a captain who led with pure grit, passion and determination.

#3 Kohli wasn’t informed about the decision beforehand: Reports

Virat Kohli during a warm-up session. Pic: Getty Images

Another report in the Indian Express claimed that Kohli wasn’t kept in the loop about the decision to replace him as ODI captain. The report claimed that a senior BCCI official informed them of the move being in the plans for a while. Eventually, the selectors took a call on the matter and named Rohit as ODI captain.

A BCCI insider was quoted as telling the daily:

“The BCCI wanted absolute clarity between red-ball and white-ball cricket. The BCCI wanted a complete (leadership) separation between the longest format and shorter formats to avoid any confusion. In the end, it was left to the selectors to take a call. They decided to appoint Rohit as new ODI captain.”

Under Kohli, India won 15 of 19 bilateral ODI series’. However, they failed to win a single ICC event. The team’s disastrous showing in the T20 World Cup proved to be the last straw for Kohli as far as his ambitions to continue leading in ODIs were concerned.

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#4 “What example are you setting for the youngsters?" - Salman Butt slams BCCI

Virat Kohli in charge during the T20 World Cup. Pic: Getty Images

Former Pakistan skipper Salman Butt has lashed out at the BCCI for sacking Kohli as ODI captain. Reacting to reports of Kohli being given a 48-hour ultimatum to step down, Butt opined that it was not the right way to treat someone who has 70 international centuries to his name.

Responding to BCCI’s move to replace Kohli as India’s one-day captain, Butt said on his YouTube channel:

"How big is this an example for the upcoming guys? That guy has 70 hundreds. The rest of the team combined doesn't have 70 hundreds. At age 30 he was around that number... It's not like he has scored ducks, played the wrong way or lost matches for the team. It's not like his intent has gone down, nor average or strike rate has drastically fallen. He has played brilliantly in supporting acts, played crucial innings in Test matches. But still if this can happen then what will others have to do to avoid a situation like this?”

Following the latest development in Indian cricket, Kohli will lead the Test team during the three-match series in South Africa, while Rohit will take over the reins for the ODIs.

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#5 “Who is captaining in T20Is will also obviously lead in ODIs” - Aakash Chopra backs BCCI

Rohit Sharma (right) during the T20I series against New Zealand. Pic: Getty Images

Former India opener Aakash Chopra has supported BCCI’s decision to replace Kohli as ODI captain. According to Chopra, once Kohli had quit the T20I captaincy, it was a foregone conclusion that Rohit would be named ODI leader as well.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Chopra explained that splitting the captaincy between white-ball and red-ball cricket is the right way to go. He said:

"The day Virat Kohli quit T20I captaincy, it was a foregone conclusion that he would lose his One Day captaincy also very soon. You will go with the captain of the T20s. Who is captaining in T20Is will also obviously lead in ODIs. World over it has never happened that the Test captain is an ODI captain and is not a T20 captain. Or as Test captain and T20 captain but not in One Day. Distinction is always about white-ball cricket and red-ball cricket and that distinction has been settled.”

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Kohli led India in 95 ODIs of which the Men in Blue won 65 and lost 27. He finished his ODI stint as captain with a win percentage of 70.43.