Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli has decided to step as the captain of the side after IPL 2021. He made the official announcement ahead of their first game of the UAE leg on Monday against Kolkata Knight Riders. Meanwhile, former KKR skipper Gautam Gambhir has reacted to the same and questioned the timing of the call.
In a video released by RCB’s official Twitter handle, Virat Kohli said about relinquishing his captaincy for the franchise after IPL 2021.
The former India opener felt it could distract RCB players and lead to more pressure, risking their chance of winning their maiden IPL title.
“Yes, it does (the timing of the decision surprises me). Just before the 2nd leg of the tournament. If you want to do that, you probably do it after the tournament. Because it makes the team unsettled and emotional as well. It makes the people probably push even harder. You would not want to do that, especially the kind of situation RCB is in,” Gambhir told Star Sports.
Gautam Gambhir further said that Virat Kohli’s call will put extra pressure on his teammates in the remaining phase of the IPL. He further said that now the players would want to win the title for him making things a little more difficult than normal.
“They are in a very good position. Why would you want to put that extra pressure, probably push your players to probably do it for Virat. You don’t want to win it for individuals, you want to win it for the franchise. If he had to do it, he could have done it after the tournament as well,” he added.
Gautam Gambhir Questions Virat Kohli’s Decision
Virat Kohli to step down from RCB captaincy after #IPL2021
“This will be my last IPL as captain of RCB. I’ll continue to be an RCB player till I play my last IPL game. I thank all the RCB fans for believing in me and supporting me.”: Virat Kohli#PlayBold #WeAreChallengers pic.twitter.com/QSIdCT8QQM
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) September 19, 2021
“This will be my last IPL as captain of RCB. I’ll continue to be an RCB player till I play my last IPL game. I thank all the RCB fans for believing in me and supporting me” said Kohli.
Virat Kohli has been constantly playing for RCB since 2008. He has scored over 5000 runs for the franchise and played in two IPL finals (2011, 2016).
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