Former England captain Nasser Hussain has lauded Virat Kohli for making his own mark in captaincy and not following his predecessor MS Dhoni’s style of leadership. Kohli followed Dhoni to become India’s Test captain in 2015 and ODI skipper in 2017 and while he could have chosen to lead India the way Dhoni did, Hussain credited Kohli for developing his unique leadership skills.
“First thing I would say is he’s his own man. It’s very easy coming after MS Dhoni and think, well, I’ve got to be like MS Dhoni, I’ve got to be this calm, calculated finisher, cool, ice man. Virat Kohli could never be the cool ice man,” Hussain said of the India captain on the Cricket Connected Show on Star Sports.
While Kohli, who made his ODI debut under Dhoni in 2008 and Test debut in 2011, has led India in far fewer matches in ODIs, he has a win percentage of 71.83 in the format. Dhoni led India in 200 ODIs, of which India won 110 and lost 74, but under Kohli, India have won 62 ODIs out of 89 and lost 24.
Kohli’s win percentage is also the best by an India captain to lead in more than 50 ODIs. In Tests, Kohli is India’s most successful captain having led team to 33 wins from 55 matches. He surpassed Dhoni (27 wins from 60 Tests) with a 28th Test win against West Indies in September last year and captained India to a famous Test series win in Australia, their first in the country in 71 years.
{{/usCountry}}Kohli’s win percentage is also the best by an India captain to lead in more than 50 ODIs. In Tests, Kohli is India’s most successful captain having led team to 33 wins from 55 matches. He surpassed Dhoni (27 wins from 60 Tests) with a 28th Test win against West Indies in September last year and captained India to a famous Test series win in Australia, their first in the country in 71 years.
{{/usCountry}}Of all Kohli’s traits, the intensity shown by the India captain is what impresses Hussain the most.
“Virat Kohli wears his heart on his sleeve. If you watch Virat Kohli play football in the morning, I worry about some of his own players because he’s so keen to win, he could do a double-footed tackle at waist height to be honest because he just wants to win,” Hussain said.