Former RCB coach Ray Jennings in a special interaction with Cricket.com said that Virat Kohli at times backed the wrong players at the wrong times and there was often a difference of opinion between the two during Jennings’ tenure as coach. Jennings was the head coach of the IPL franchise from 2009 to 2013.
“If I have to look back then I would say that in IPL there used to be 25-30 players (in the squad) and it was the coach’s duty to look after all the players. Sometimes he was a bit of a loner in the team. Sometimes, he backed the wrong players. But, you can’t blame him for that. I wanted certain players to bowl or bat in certain conditions/situations but he had different ideas,” Jennings told Cricket.com.
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He further highlighted on the difficulties of leading an IPL side and how it can be different than leading an ODI side.
“See, IPL is very different from international cricket. In six weeks’ time, some players can pick form and some may go awry. So, someone in the group needs to be there all the time. When I was there certain players should have played more but he has different views. However, that is in the past and it’s nice to see him maturing day by day and he will start winning IPL trophies,” he said.
Jennings Praises Kohli
While criticising Kohli’s captaincy tactics, Jennings also said that he is a very good individual and that the game of cricket needs guys like the RCB captain around.
“You needed somebody around Virat to guide him (at that point in time). Of course, he and I bumped a few times but he is a good guy and a very quick learner. Nice to see him grow as a player and now as a captain. His mannerism is great. His best is yet to come,” Jennings said.
RCB under Kohli once again is starting a fresh IPL season with a lot of hope and aspirations. They face Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in their first game of the season in Dubai on September 21.
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