After releasing the retention list yesterday, Royal Challengers Bangalore have sparked excitement among their supporters. Leaving out stars like Siraj, Du Plessis, and Maxwell from their retention list, Royal Challengers Bangalore surprised everyone by choosing to retain Yash Dayal. Interestingly, after releasing their previous captain Faf du Plessis, fans are now questioning who will take charge in his absence. Some media reports are already claiming that team India’s legend batter Virat Kohli will take the oath as captain of the upcoming season of IPL. Speculation is mounting that Virat Kohli may wish to take on the team captaincy once again. Addressing this, former Indian cricketer and commentator Sanjay Manjrekar was explosive in his remarks about Virat Kohli’s potential return as captain.
In a recent interview, the former Indian batter expressed concerns over the impact captaincy has on Kohli’s batting performance. Manjrekar said, “For a moment, set aside Virat Kohli’s stature and focus solely on his performance. Compare his stats as a batsman versus as a captain, and then you can decide if he should lead. Last season, he batted with a strike rate of 150, whereas earlier his strike rate was often under 130.”
Sanjay Manjrekar: “Virat Kohli as T20 player isn’t that impactful and his contributions are not impressive enough so he shouldn’t take Captaincy role again, obviously fans are emotional but I won’t run away from cricketing logic because of hero worship like fans”(Star Sports). pic.twitter.com/xAGRNRI2S6
— 𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫 🤫🏟️ (@rohancric947) October 31, 2024
In the same interview, Manjrekar gave a strong opinion about why Virat has taken retirement from this shorter format of this game. with an eye of respect, he believes Kohli may no longer be as effective in T20 cricket as he once was. He further added “Can Virat still make a mark in T20 cricket? About 95 percent of fans want to see him as captain, but if you look at his numbers as a leader, they’re not exceptional,” he remarked. “In Test cricket, Kohli’s form is also a concern, but the team needs him. However, I wouldn’t call him a T20 great anymore, as he isn’t playing with the same impact he had 7-8 years ago.”
In the end, only time will tell if Kohli will ultimately be seen as captain once again. As of now, he has dedicated his entire IPL career to RCB. For this franchise, Kohli has played 252 matches, scoring 8,004 runs at an average of 38.67, including 8 centuries and 55 fifties. Yesterday after releasing the retention list, RCB retained him for ₹21 crore, reflecting the franchise’s continued belief in his abilities.