‘He demanded absolute professionalism’: Shane Lee feels Indian players ‘appear a bit scared’ under Kohli’s captaincy

Team India won the Test series 2-1 in Australia with stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane leading the team.

In 2020, questions regarding Virat Kohli’s captaincy have surfaced. India lost the Test series to New Zealand at the start of the year, Royal Challengers Bangalore’s failed to reach the IPL finals and then India lost the first Test to Australia before Kohli went on his paternity leave. He is one of the most successful captains of all time but the setbacks in 2020 have led to some criticism.

Virat Kohli leads Team India off the field. (Getty Images)

When Kohli left Team India after their debacle in Adelaide, there was a feeling among the fans and critics that India could crumble without their best batsman. But they bounced back as Team India won the Test series 2-1 with stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane leading the team.

Former Australia all-rounder Shane Lee commented on the Kohli vs Rahane captaincy debate. He feels players are ‘almost scare to put a foot out of line’ under Kohli’s leadership.

“Kohli is one of the greatest batsmen of all time. But I just feel that he is almost revered by the players within the team. They're almost scared to put a foot out of line. He demanded absolute professionalism from the Indian team. The players had to be fit, they had to great in the field and good catching, but they almost appear a bit scared. I just see a really relaxed team under Rahane," Lee said on the ‘Afternoon Sport’ podcast.

Virat will now lead the team for India’s series against England that starts in February. The squad for the first two Tests has been announced and India will be strengthened by the return of Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and Ravichandran Ashwin for the series.