5 Under-19 captains who went on to lead the senior teams

Rahul Dravid told a few Under-19 players that the Under-19 level should be only be a part of the journey and the ultimate goal should be to be able to play for India at the senior levell.

Many players have excelled at the Under-19, not just as players but also as captains and have also captained their country at the senior level. We take a look at five such players here:

5.Mushfiqur Rahim

The diminutive wicket-keeper batsman led Bangladesh in the 2006 Under-19 World Cup, where he led the side until the Super League Quarterfinal stage of the competition.He is among the few players, who has played for the senior team before playing for his country at the Under 19 World Cup. He debuted for The Tigers in their 2005 tour to England.

In 2009, Rahim was appointed the vice-captain of the Bangladesh side and in September 2011, he was appointed skipper of the national side, replacing Shakib Al Hasan at the helm.

Under Rahim’s leadership, the team showed great progress, reaching the final of the Asia Cup on home turf and a year later, he became the first Bangladeshi player to make a double hundred in Test Cricket, against Sri Lanka at Galle.

Rahim resigned from the post in 2013 and days after making the decision, revealed that he regretted quitting captaincy and wished he had stayed longer at the post. The Board later conducted an investigation over the resignation.

4.Kane Williamson

The present New Zealand skipper captained the Blackcaps side, which reached the semifinals of the competition in the 2008 edition of the World Cup, which was held in Kuala Lumpur, where they lost to India.

Williamson made his international debut two years later and from the beginning, showed that he possessed a great cricketing brain along with a huge appetite for big runs. In the absence of regular skipper Brendon McCullm, it was him that the Blackcaps turned to and he showed a great intent while leading the side.

Last February, when McCullum announced his retirement from all forms of the game, Williamson took over as full-time captain of the Blackcaps side and it goes without saying that much is expected from him to take his side into the Top 3 of the rankings.

3.Eoin Morgan

One of the few captains to have captained two different teams at the Under-19 and international level, Eoin Morgan requires a huge amount of credit for the manner he has transformed the England limited-overs team.

Morgan played for Ireland in two Under-19 World Cups- in 2004 and 2006- and was the captain of the team in the latter edition, where he also finished as the country’s highest run-getter.

He was part of the Irish squad that reached the Super Six stage of the competition in the 2007 World Cup, but for the left-hander, it was always a dream to play for England right from a young age since he wanted to play Test cricket.

In 2009, Morgan debuted for England in ODI Cricket first and then a year later, had his dreams realised against Bangladesh at Lord’s when he made his Test debut. While in the following years he could not cement a place in the longer format, he certainly did become an asset in white-ball cricket and after a string of disappointing performances under Alastair Cook, was appointed the captain of the ODI and T20 side in 2014.

However, he suffered an early setback early in his tenure as England bowed out in the Group Stage of the 2015 World Cup and it was after that low point that he and his side began to approach limited-overs cricket in a different manner.

That approach paid dividends as the English reached the finals of the World T20 in India last year and continued to make waves in the format. He will hope to lead them to their second ICC title later this year when the Champions Trophy comes to England.

2.Brian Lara

The Prince of Trinidad played in the 1^st ever Under-19 World Cup that was held in 1988 and led that West Indian side to the semi-final stage of the competition. While playing for the senior West Indian outfit, Lara had multiple stints at the helm, leading in 1998 and then in 2003 as well.

He lost his captaincy for an indefinite period in 2005, but was picked to lead again in 2006 and led the side until the end of the 2007 World Cup after which he called it quits from the international game.

Lara’s highest point as a captain of West Indies came in 2004, when he captained the side to the 2004 Champions Trophy win in England, their first major title in 25 years.

1.Virat Kohli

The Delhiite became a well-known name in Indian cricketing circles after he led the Indian team to the 2008 Under 19 World Cup title and who knew that in the space of the next 9 years, a bearded grown man would take over as the leader for all three formats of the senior Indian cricket team.

One thing that separates Kohli from a few others is the fact that he had actually led at all levels before going to lead India at the Under-19 level and can perhaps be branded in the ‘natural leader’ bracket with little doubt, now that he is Team India captain as well.

After leading the side in the 2008 World Cup, Kohli went through the hard grind with the senior team as a player and was rewarded with the vice-captaincy in 2012 and two years later, received th Test captaincy, when MS Dhoni called it quits from the longest format.

In 2017, when Dhoni decided to give up captaincy in the shorter formats as well, Kohli was automatically chosen to lead in coloured clothing as well.