Virat Kohli is a name that is not by the cricketing world as one of the best batsmen ever to grace the football pitch. As a player under the leadership of MS Dhoni or Rohit Sharma, Kohli is known as a team player who has given his all. He did not win any title as a captain for India in terms of ICC titles, but his impact in Test cricket away from home was a key takeaway for him. This is why there is always a question of how was Virat as a captain for India. Some say he did great, while others think he was never a captain material. So sit back with us as we are telling all about Kohli Captaincy Record In Detail.
Virat Kohli Overview As Captain For Indian Team
Virat Kohli did start his captaincy for India after post mega run under MS Dhoni that started in 2007 and ended in the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup. India under Dhoni won the 2007 T20I World Cup, the 2011 Cricket World Cup and the 2013 Champions Trophy.
This made Virat only in a place where winning silverware at the ICC events became a must. His winning record in Test away from home was very good and aggressive. In the 2014-15 Test tour, MS Dhoni retired from Test cricket. In the ODI, he did play the 2019 World Cup. But this time it was under Virat’s leadership.
And in 2016, MSD did end his time as a skipper in T20Is for India. As a result, Virat became the captain of all three formats.
In fact, post leadership days as MS Dhoni, he did take the team ahead in all formats of cricket, Test, ODI and T20I, to the core levels. He is known for his aggressive nature and hence, Virat as a captain has some fans and others who think there are better people than him. As he did get the leadership role post MS Dhoni, won every title for India as a captain.
Kohli Captaincy Record in Test cricket
It is a fact that in Test cricket, India did do well away from home and in India under Virat’s leadership. 58.8% win ratio makes him one of the best leaders in Test cricket ever.
Also as a batsman, he scored 5703 runs with a good average of 55.36. He was captain for India in 68 games, where he won 24 matches at home, 15 away from home and 16 losses with 12 draws only.
As a captain, he did score 20 centuries and only great Graeme Smith of South Africa scored more 100s as a captain in Tests than him. But Graeme’s period as a captain was much more lasting than Kohli’s.
And this record did have seven double centuries and this makes it even better.
The final Test of Virat came on 11 January 2022. They lost the series away from home to South Africa and the Rohit Shama was made the skipper.
| Test Match | 68 |
| Won At Home | 24 |
| Won away from home | 15 |
| Lost | 16 |
| Draw | 13 |
| Win Percentage | 58.82 |
Kohli Captaincy Record in ODIs
Virat Kohli is known for his impact on ODI cricket. So yes, for fans, the expectations were huge as a leader in ODI. In 2019, he played his first major final as a captain at the ODI World Cup. In 2017, under MS Dhoni’s leadership, India lost the final of the Champions Trophy to Pakistan.
In the 2019 CWC, India reached the semis in England. But they lost the semis to New Zealand where the middle order failed India. However, the win percentage of Virat was huge 68.42. He captained India in the ODI in 95 games, winning 65, and losing 27 and 3 with no result.
In ODIs, he was fourth fourth-best captain for India. Overall, he won for India’s 65 ODI games as a skipper.
With 21 centuries, 5549 runs and batting average of 72.65 made this even better. So as a captain, he did work really well with the bat. But not winning silverware did hurt the side. And him picking Ravi Shastri as the head coach and making Anil Kumble resign did not go well for him. Because Rohit Sharma was winning Indian Premier League titles for Mumbai Indias when he was not doing the same for Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
And in the 2023 CWC, he was not the captain for India. The biggest downfall in his ODI leadership was not to have experienced players in the middle order. Kohli’s Captaincy Record In Detail in ODIs has good wins, with no major ICC silverware.
| ODI | 95 |
| Won At Home | 24 |
| Won at Neutral Venues | 12 |
| Won away from home | 29 |
| Lost | 27 |
| NR | 3 |
| Win Percentage | 68.42 |
Kohli Captaincy Record in T20I
South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia are four places where Virat won the series in T20Is as a captain. But he did not win the T20I World Cup. Plus in 50 matches, he made India win 30, losing 16 and four no result. His winning parentage was 64.58. Plis Virat did score 1570 runs, which is great. His leadership ended after not winning the 2022 T20 World Cup. This made Rohit the captain who lost it in 2022 but won the 2024 World Cup for India.
| T20I | 50 |
| Won At Home | 13 |
| Won at Neutral Venues | 3 |
| Won away from home | 14 |
| Lost | 16 |
| NR | 3 |
| Win Percentage | 64.58 |
Virat Kohli in all formats as India’s captain
Virat Kohli first captain India in 2013 and it lasted until 2022. He did captain 213 matches in all three formats and won 107 lost 84, 3 tie and 11 draws.
His winning ratio was better than MS Dhoni’s overall with a 63.38 per cent winning ratio to MS Dhoni’s 53.61. But not winning any ICC silverware did hurt him a lot.
In the Test, Virat did well and made India win games. And when it comes to winning series away from home, he was India’s finest. But it was ICC events that made the biggest difference. Plus Rohit was showing better leadership skills in the IPL and winning titles after titles when Virat did not win even one as a captain in the IPL.
But Virat is known for bringing the Yo-Yo Test, making fitness paramount winning away from home and going for the win rather than a draw. Yes, he would not be able to match MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma in winning ICC titles as leaders. But Virat never let the team down too much.
Virat Kohli In The IPL as a captain
Virat Kohli did step down as the RCB skipper in 2021. He did lead the team to the IPL final in 2016, but they did lose it out. Despite having star players and a great fanbase, RCB did not find overall balance and hence, they lost the plot in total.
Virat did lead RCB in 140 games as captain, winning 64, losing 69, and seven no results with a 45.71 win percentage. Losing more games than winning shows how they were not able to crack the code when others won so many titles in the form of MSD and Rohit.
Virat Kohli: Improving Fitness Standards
Virat Kohli is known for his fitness. Like he does not what is not great for his body. Hence, he came with the Yo-Yo Test format where every cricketer has to pass the test if they wish to be part of Team India.
In the time of Dhoni and previous era of Indian captains, passing such tests for fitness was not a must. But Virat made it 100 per cent as a must thing to do. Even seniors to him had to do it. This came as a change in the system of Indian cricket and now this has become a basic thing to do.
And the best part is every cricketer now keeps in mind and works hard off the pitch to stay fit as in sports, fitness plays a major role in making things better overall.
Final Take
From the above details on Kohli Captaincy Record, we can MS Dhoni making India win three ICC titles and Rohit Sharma leading the T20 World Cup win 2024 have made them better captains than Virat as the value of ICC events is huge. They have lost the finals too. But winning IPLs and other titles overall show the right impact they made.
But it was due to Virat Kohli playing well as a batsman and senior player. But overall, Virat would be known as a great Test captain. And this means a lot in cricket for any leader.
