'Was considered as failed captain': Kohli opens up on not winning ICC trophy as skipper

Indian cricket superstar Virat Kohli is counted among the most successful captains of the Men In Blue across all formats of the game. Kohli led the Indian Test team from 2014 to 2022 and the limited-overs squads from early 2017 to late 2021. However, the 34-year-old is still known for his forgettable record of not returning with any ICC trophy during his time as the captain of the team.

Meanwhile, Kohli appeared on the latest episode of the RCB podcast and shed light on his tenure as the Indian captain. Speaking to host Danish Sait, the former Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain revealed that he was labeled as a failed captain after he failed to India through to any major ICC title wins. It is worth noting that his time in the leadership role came to a dramatic conclusion, as Rohit Sharma was elevated to the position.

“Look, you play to win tournaments. I captained in Champions Trophy 2017 (reached the final), 2019 WOrld CUp (reached the semifinal), I captained in World Test Championship (reached the final), and T20 World Cup in 2021 (failed to qualify for the knockouts). After three (four) ICC tournaments, I was considered as a failed captain,” Kohli said on the RCB podcast.

“There have been people, who have never won a World Cup”

The former India captain then added that he never judged himself due to the criticism and took pride in whatever the team achieved while also bringing a cultural change. “A tournament happens for a certain period of time but a culture happens over a long period of time and for that you need consistency for that you need more characters than just winning a tournament. I won a World Cup as a player. I won the Champions Trophy as a player. I have been part of the team that has won five Test maces. If you look at that point of view there have been people, who have never won a World Cup,” he added.

“Sachin Tendulkar was playing in his sixth World Cup”

Speaking on India’s ODI World Cup win in 2011, Kohli mentioned that he was lucky to be a part of the squad, as he ended up having a great run of scores. He also mentioned that it was the sixth World Cup appearance for the legendary Sachin Tendulkar. “I am looking back at things that I am grateful for not what has gone wrong in my career. I am not mad for my trophy cabinet to be full,” he said.

Etched in our memories FOREVER! ☺️ ☺️

🗓️ #OnThisDay in 2011, #TeamIndia won the ODI World Cup for the second time. 🏆 🙌 pic.twitter.com/HcsrWzJGJ1

— BCCI (@BCCI) April 2, 2022