“Split Captaincy Doesn’t Work In India”- MS Dhoni’s Old Interview Resurfaces After Virat Kohli Steps Down

VinayMonday January 17, 2022

3,279 1 minute read

Virat Kohli stunned the entire cricketing fraternity by announcing his decision to step down as the captain of the Indian Test team via a social media post. A few months ago, Virat was the captain of the Indian cricket team in all three formats. However, he stepped down as the T20I captain after the ICC T20 World Cup. Soon after, Rohit Sharma replaced him as ODI captain. Ultimately, Kohli resigned as Test captain also.

Fans should note that the selection committee and the BCCI did not mind playing with the split captaincy in the red-ball and white-ball formats. However, since he could no longer give his 120% to the team as the Test captain, Kohli decided to relinquish the position of the Test captain.

Now, after Virat made this big decision, an old interview of former Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has resurfaced on social media. Back in 2017, when Dhoni stepped down as the ODI and T20I captain of India, he clarified that split captaincy can be a short-term thing in India, but it will never work in the long run.

Here’s what Dhoni had to say: “I believe that one player leading the team is crucial. It was on my mind when Virat took over the Test captaincy. I don’t believe in split captaincy. For the team, there has to be only one leader. Split captaincy doesn’t work in India, I was waiting for the right time.”

Who will become the next Test captain of the Indian cricket team after Virat Kohli stepped down?

While Rohit Sharma has taken over the reins of the Indian cricket team in the ODI and T20I formats, it is still unclear who will lead the team in the longest format of the game after Kohli. There are many candidates for the role, with KL Rahul being the frontrunner. Even Rishabh Pant and Jasprit Bumrah are in the race.

If the selectors consider the situations of MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli, it should not be a surprise if Rohit Sharma leads the Test team because if Rahul, Pant or Bumrah become the new leader, there will be split captaincy again.