"Strange feeling for me" - When Virat Kohli opened up on being full-time Test captain at the toss in BAN vs IND 2015 match [Watch]

Team India ace batter Virat Kohli was thrust into a red-ball leadership role after MS Dhoni's retirement in 2014. He initially led the team in the 2014-15 Border-Gavaskar series opener in Adelaide since the veteran wicket-keeper was unavailable, but by the end of the series, Kohli became the official Test captain.

The right-handed batter had played only 29 Test matches ahead of the Australian tour that turned his career around. After the chaotic campaign Down Under, Kohli's first series assignment after being named captain was the one-off Test against Bangladesh in June 2015.

After losing the toss on both occasions in Australia in Adelaide and Sydney, the coin finally favored Kohli as he called the right side. Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar had asked Kohli what it feels like being Team India's Test captain after he opted to bat first.

"In Australia it was on and off, but now it is the beginning of a full-time job, so pretty excited, have a great bunch of guys backing me throughout, and hopefully we can put in a strong performance. It was a pretty strange feeling for me when I was announced because I never thought I will be Test captain of India at 26, but now I have his opportunity in front of me, god has been kind, I have worked hard, things have fallen into place, I have the responsibility of doing that job and take the team to the level we want to be at," Kohli said.

Virat Kohli's reign as Test captain ended up being the most productive phase in Indian red-ball history. The skipper revolutionized the side by prioritising fitness and revamping the fast bowling resources to ensure overseas success. Under his captaincy, India won the 2018-19 Border-Gavaskar series in Australia, made it to the finals of the inaugural World Test Championship (WTC), and made India even a bigger force than ever on home turf.

Virat Kohli led India to 40 wins out of 68 Tests as captain

Kohli failed to guide India to a win in each of his first four matches as the skipper. The two matches in Australia ended up being a loss and a draw, while the aforementioned clash against Bangladesh, which officially kickstarted his reign, ended up being a rain-curtailed draw. The subsequent series opener in Sri Lanka also ended in a loss.

However, after the initial jitter, Team India were undefeated for 19 Tests in a row. Their next loss came during the 2017 Border-Gavaskar series opener in Pune against Australia. Kohli's reign as Test captain came to an end after the 2021-22 away series loss against South Africa. The ace batter retired from Test cricket ahead of the England tour and the 2025-27 World Test Championship (WTC).