“I was shocked” - Ricky Ponting explains why he was surprised with Virat Kohli’s decision to quit Test captaincy 

Australian legend Ricky Ponting has stated that he was surprised with Virat Kohli’s decision to step down as India’s Test captain following the series loss in South Africa. Ponting, himself a former captain, revealed that he had a chat with Kohli during the first half of IPL 2021 and the latter seemed passionate about carrying on as Test skipper.

Under pressure following India’s loss in South Africa and in the wake of controversies surrounding him and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Kohli quit as Test leader after seven years in charge. Earlier, he had stepped down as T20I captain and was sacked as ODI skipper.

In an interview posted on the International Cricket Council's (ICC) official website, Ponting admitted that he was surprised with Kohli’s move, considering the conversation he had with the star cricketer during IPL 2021. The former Australian captain said:

“Yes, it did actually (surprise me). Probably the main reason why is I had a chat and good catch-up with Virat during the first part of the IPL (2021) before it got postponed. He was talking then about stepping away (from captaincy) from white-ball cricket and how passionate he was to continue on to be Test match captain. He just loved and cherished that job and that post so much. Obviously, the Indian Test team had achieved a lot under his leadership. When I heard it, I was really, really surprised.”

Praising Kohli’s passion as leader, Ponting added:

"You only have to watch him on the field for an hour of the day's play to realise how passionate he is about that job and the role, and how much he wants the team to win and how much he wants the best for Indian cricket.”

Despite his surprise, Ponting could empathize with Kohli, having been in the same shoes for many years for Australia. The 47-year-old opined that there is potentially a shelf-life for international cricket captains and even coaches. He elaborated:

“Virat's been there for close to seven years now. If there's a country in the world that's the most difficult to captain, it’s probably India because of just how popular the game is and how much every single Indian loves to see the fortunes of the Indian cricket team, whether they are good or bad. You weigh all those things up.”

Ponting continued:

“He is 33 years of age now and he will want to continue playing for a few more years I am sure and have a crack a breaking some records that he is not far off breaking. Maybe if he does that as a batter and without the extra responsibility of captaincy, it might make it a bit easier for him.”

Kohli scored two fifties in three ODIs playing as a pure batter during the one-day series in South Africa. He hasn’t registered an international hundred since November 2019.

“He can walk away very proud” - Ricky Ponting on Virat Kohli’s achievements as Test captain

Kohli is India’s most successful captain in Test cricket. Under him, India won 40 out of 68 Test matches. The 33-year-old also led India to the top of the ICC Test team rankings, a spot the side held for 42 consecutive months between October 2016 and March 2020.

Analyzing Kohli’s stint as Test captain, Ponting stated that under the former, India started winning a few more matches overseas, which was a significant achievement. The former Aussie skipper said:

"If you think about India before Virat, it was about winning a lot of games at home and not winning quite as many overseas. The thing that improved the most was India winning a few more games overseas, and that's something that he and all of the Indian cricket have to be really proud of.”

Ponting continued:

"The other thing is there was really was a real focus placed on Test cricket by the BCCI when Virat took over, and I think a lot of it has come from him as well – to focus more on Test cricket and winning more games home and away. Given his Test record as captain, he can walk away from the role very, very proud of what he has achieved."

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Kohli’s greatest moment as captain?

According to Ponting, India’s maiden Test series win in Australia in 2018-19 was possibly the highest point of Kohli’s career as captain. He commented:

"I haven't watched every series and every match that they have played, but if you take a look back at the series against Australia in 2018-19, it would be pretty hard to go past that.”

India defeated Australia 2-1 during their tour in 2018-19 to create history. The Indians were also 2-1 up in England last year when the final Test was canceled. However, under Kohli, India failed to win a Test series in South Africa.