He can be combative on the field at times – a quality that some like, some don’t. He can also get carried away by this own will to succeed at times. However, there can be no doubt about Virat Kohli's talent as a player, and his popularity. His astute decisions as a captain mean that his winning record is good as well. Kohli currently seems to have lost favour with the cricketing powers that be – first, he stepped down as India’s T20 captain with many wondering if there was some coercion involved. Now he’s been summarily sacked as India’s ODI captain.
The BCCI made the announcement that Rohit Sharma would be taking over as India's ODI captain; in other words Kohli had been sacked from his position as skipper.
According to reports, Kohli was asked to step down, but he didn’t and was then sacked.
His fans are legion.
His admirers are numberless and they feel that a great injustice has been done to Kohli.
Some fans continue to be just M S Dhoni fans – they don’t really care.
According to reports, Sachin Tendulkar's "unceremonious" sacking was very "embarrassing" and "humiliating" as well in 1997. No one from the BCCI called to inform him; he learned about his removal from a media source.
Fans are furious. Sharing stats about his record as a captain, they feel that Kohli has been treated very unfairly.
There is the feeling that Kohli has somehow been used and betrayed by the BCCI
Fans feel that this is mismanagement by the BCCI and that this is going to be bad for the Indian cricket team.
The tenures of BCCI president Ganguly and secretary Shah had ended in mid-2020 and they are continuing in their positions on an ad hoc basis, say reports. The matter is before the courts and is yet to be heard finally.
Fans feel that Kohli is more appreciated in other countries than he is in India.
A lot of commentators and media persons are saying that being relieved of the pressure of captaincy will free Kohli up to concentrate on his own batting. Some agree, but some believe this to be nonsense.
Fans are upset and they believe Kohli deserved better.
Journalist Rajdeep Sardesai says that this is not ideal, but certainly not unusual.
Change is always difficult – when that change impacts a player and their fans, there is bound to be blowback. In the case of Tendulkar, we had in fact seen his personal performance dip as a captain. Though Kohli has a completely different temperament – as a player and a person – this may just be a blessing in disguise for his fans?
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