When MS Dhoni didn't want Virat Kohli to play for India

Over the course of the past decade, Virat Kohli has proved his worth as the natural successor to MS Dhoni's captaincy throne. However, what one might not know is that there was a time when India's most successful skipper didn't want Virat Kohli to be picked in the squad.

Back in 2018, former chief selector, Dilip Vengsarkar revealed in a meeting that he pushed Kohli's case for selection in 2008, but his choice was shot down. Instead of the youngster, Dhoni and then BCCI president N Srinivasan were in favour of picking Subramaniam Badrinath.

Vengsarkar opened up that Dhoni and then India coach Gary Kirsten had their doubts about Kohli's place in the squad, despite the youngster's performances in the Emerging Teams tour of Australia.

Backing Kohli's skill with the bat and his confidence as the 2008 U-19 World Cup-winning captain, Vengsarkar wanted to try out the youngster in Sri Lanka. Eventually, Kohli was picked and made his debut, but it came at a huge cost for Vengsarkar.

Srinivasan, miffed at Vengsarkar's decision to pick Kohli over Badrinath reportedly sacked the latter, only two years into his role. Former India opener Krishnamachari Srikkanth was named as the new chief of selectors in place of Vengsarkar.

However, 12 years since his debut, Kohli is now one of the leading batsmen in the game and is also India's captain across all formats. The Kohli-Dhoni combination has led India to many famous wins over the years and has formed a rich part of India's cricketing history.