Former England captain Nasser Hussain on Sunday heaped praise on Indian skipper Virat Kohli, saying the only stats he care about are match results.
Personal Stats Doesn’t Matter to Virat Kohli
Kohli, who already has numerous records to his name, is regarded as one of the modern-day greats of world cricket. Impressed by the right-handed batsman’s approach towards the game, Nasser insisted that his own stats doesn’t matter to him.
“He is not worried about stats. The only stats he is worried about is the win/loss column.” Hussain said while talking about Virat Kohli in a show, telecasted on Star Sports.
The Delhi-born cricketer made his way to the big stage after consistent performances at the domestic arena. Once he appeared in international cricket, it wasn’t a cake walk for the young fellow.
It took quite some time for him to settle down. Not that he didn’t have enough talent, but it was just those tiny adjustments. The flamboyant cricketer was quite quick in overcoming his shortcomings and hence setting an example for the young cricketers across the world.
Duncan Fletcher Had Predicated About Virat Kohli
However, former Indian coach Duncan Fletcher had seen something different in him during the early days. Nasser, the celebrated English commentator, revealed that Fletcher had told him that Virat was going to be a big thing when he wasn’t quite a known cricketer.
“I was speaking to (former India head coach) Duncan Fletcher about him and he said ‘watch out for this lad. He has a real fight and character in him.” He said.
Virat Kohli Has A Commendable Record As Skipper
Having amassed over 11000 ODI and 7000 Test runs at the age of 31, Kohli is on his way to pull off some of the centuries-old records. He averages 53 in Test and 59 in ODI cricket, which is among the best in the current age.
Virat also holds a commendable record as skipper of the Indian cricket team. With 62 wins in 89 matches, he has a whopping 71.83% win-percentage as Team India’s ODI skipper.
In Tests matches, Kohli has led India team in 55 matches since 2014, when MS Dhoni announced his retirement from Test cricket. Of the 55 matches Virat has won 33, lost just 12 and draw 10 matches, at win-percentage of 60. His win-percentage is the best among all the Indian captains, who captained in 25 or more test matches.
| Players | Span | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | Drawn | Win% | Loss% |
| M Azharuddin | 1990-99 | 47 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 19 | 29.78 | 29.78 |
| SR Tendulkar | 1996-00 | 25 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 12 | 16.00 | 36.00 |
| SC Ganguly | 2000-05 | 49 | 21 | 13 | 0 | 15 | 42.85 | 26.53 |
| R Dravid | 2003-07 | 25 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 11 | 32.00 | 24.00 |
| V Sehwag | 2005-12 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 50.00 | 25.00 |
| A Kumble | 2007-08 | 14 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 21.42 | 35.71 |
| MS Dhoni | 2008-14 | 60 | 27 | 18 | 0 | 15 | 45.00 | 30.00 |
| V Kohli | 2014-20 | 55 | 33 | 12 | 0 | 10 | 60.00 | 21.81 |
| AM Rahane | 2017-18 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 | 0.00 |
It appears that captaincy has had a role to play in Virat’s batting. In both Tests and ODIs, he average increases substantially compared to his career under other captains. In Tests he averages 61 during his careers as Indian skipper compared 41 earlier. Similarly in ODIs, he averages 74 as a captain against 51 as non-captain.
Moreover, in 150 matches that India has won out the total 248 matches he has played in his test career, Kohli averages 77.36. His 35 out of 43 centuries in ODI have come in a winning cause.
A similar picture can be discerned in his Test career as well. In matches won and drawn, he averages 60 and 70 respectively compared to mere 36 in the matches lost. 20 of his 27 centuries have come in matches won (13) and drawn (7) together.
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