Virat Kohli captaincy record in Tests: Top 5 Test wins

After Mahendra Singh Dhoni bid adieu to Test Cricket in December 2014, Virat Kohli took over the leadership role. While there were no doubts about his credentials with the willow, there were speculations regarding the manner in which he would embrace the captain's role.

It’s almost been three years and Kohli is yet to lose a Test series. In 29 games, the Indian team boasts of a win percentage of 64.29 with 18 victories under the captaincy of the swashbuckling batsman from New Delhi.

In our article, we have figured out five of his best wins as the skipper of the Indian Test team

#5 India vs Sri Lanka- August 2015 - Colombo

India didn’t have the greatest of starts in the Test series against Sri Lanka, when their batting collapsed while chasing a modest target in the fourth innings of the first test.

Kohli was pretty new to Test leadership and the road forward in the series was an opportunity for him to manifest his mettle and temperament.

He did it in style and guided India to a rampaging victory by a staggering margin of 278 runs in the second Test at Colombo. After setting the Lankans a target of 412 runs, India shot them out for 134 runs to draw level in the series.

Although the Indian skipper failed in the second innings, he compiled a breezy knock of 78 runs from 107 balls that included eight classical boundaries and a monstrous six.

#4 India vs South Africa- December 2015- New Delhi

South Africa was beaten comprehensively by India

India, with a couple of wins in the first three Tests of the series, had already taken an unassailable lead in the series. The fourth and final Test at New Delhi was a mere formality. Nevertheless, it fetched Virat Kohli’s men with their most comprehensive victory of the series by 337 runs.

South Africa tried their hearts out to defy India the victory, but the Men in Blue were too good to be perturbed. Ajinkya Rahane notched up a couple of centuries on the back of which India posted decent scores in both the innings.

South Africa were outclassed - and cheaply on both occasions, and India claimed the series 3-0. Virat Kohli scored 42 runs and 88 runs respectively, which helped India put runs on the board.

#3 India vs West Indies- August 2016- St Lucia

Bhuvneshwar Kumar after his 5-wicket haul in St Lucia

West Indies has been struggling in Test cricket for the past six to seven years. India, with a strong line-up, was expected to brush them aside without much struggle. They lived up to it, thrashing their Caribbean rivals by a margin of 237 runs.

The match holds a special moment for Virat Kohli as under him, India moved to the pinnacle of the ICC Test Rankings for the first time when they took a 2-0 lead in the series with their win in St Lucia.

While Jason Holder’s men were impressive with the ball, their batting succumbed to some disciplined bowling by the Indians.

In the first innings, it was Bhuvneshwar Kumar who picked the bones out of the Caribbean batting. The second innings saw a combined effort from the pacers as well as the spinners to bowl the Windies out cheaply.

#2 India vs England- December 2016 - Chennai

A victory lap by India after their triumph over England

After England threatened to win the first test at Rajkot, India came back to pocket three games in a row and erase any chances of an English comeback. India romped home in the third Test and the game will be remembered for the fact that it turned out to be India’s biggest win over England in Tests.

Moeen Ali’s spectacular knock of 146 runs followed by stern resistance by England’s lower order ensured that England post a substantial total off 477. India came back and racked up 759 runs to push England on the back foot.

Trailing by 282 runs, England never got themselves back into the game. Ravindra Jadeja ripped the heart out of their batting with a spell of 25-5-48-7 and bowled them out for 207 runs in their second innings.

#1 India vs Australia - March 2017- Bengaluru

Virat Kohli's men came back from their defeat in Pune

In the first Test of Australia’s tour of India at Pune, the hosts stumbled to a hefty defeat by 333 runs. However, Virat Kohli and Co didn’t drop their guard and instead staged a stupendous comeback, edging their rivals by 75 runs.

In their quest to make a comeback at Bangalore, India huffed and puffed to a total of 189 in the end of their first innings. Australia went on to take a lead of 87 runs to put the skids on India.

However, gutsy batting by Cheteshwar Pujara and Rahane ensured that India post some sort of a target on the board.

Defending 187 runs, Ravichandran Ashwin dished out a six-wicket haul and bowled Steven Smith’s men out for 112 runs. Virat Kohli couldn’t quite shine with the bat, but led India to the triumph with expertise.