'Lot of eyeballs were raised': Karthik recalls major highlight of Kohli's Test captaincy; 'Backs were against the wall'
Kohli had stepped down as Test skipper in January earlier this year and Rohit Sharma took over the reins.
Former India captain Virat Kohli will appear in his 100th Test on Friday when the side takes on Sri Lanka in the first of the two-match series in Mohali. Kohli will become the 12th Indian to feature in 100 games in the longest format. India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik, who has played alongside Kohli for a majority of the latter's career across formats, has said that the 33-year-old left a lasting legacy as Test skipper for world cricket.
Kohli had stepped down as Test skipper in January earlier this year and Rohit Sharma took over the reins. The Mohali Test will also be the beginning of Rohit's full-time leadership role in the format.
Also read: Kohli's 100th Test: 5 fiery press conferences from former India captain's career
“I do not think Virat Kohli has just left a legacy for Indian cricket, he has left a legacy for world cricket. The intensity with which India has played Test cricket for the last few years has been phenomenal. The world has been amazed by how much energy Virat can bring. People all around the globe enjoyed that. I think Kohli brought fitness to the table and he has made that a mandate, people have followed that and you can see the standard of fielding has gone up two notches,” Karthik said on the ICC review.
Kohli's career has been full of incredible achievements – both as batter and captain; however, when asked about the major highlight of Kohli's captaincy tenure, Karthik recalled the Australian tour of India in 2018.
"I think for me, it would be the Australia tour of India when India lost the first Test in Pune on a rank turner. A lot of eyeballs were raised on how can India lose on a turning pitch but after that, they played in Bengaluru, things just went on an upward curve after that. Backs were against the wall after the first Test," Karthik said.
Kohli holds the record for most Test appearances as India captain (68) and he also holds the record for most Test wins by an Indian skipper (40). Only Graeme Smith, Ricky Ponting, and Steve Waugh have won more matches than Kohli as captain in Test cricket.
