“Only Virat Kohli can reveal why he left the Test captaincy”- Sourav Ganguly

Virat Kohli stepped down as T20I captain in 2021, Test captain in 2022 and was replaced as ODI captain in 2021.

Former BCCI President Sourav Ganguly has opened up about how the board was not ready for Virat Kohli to step down as the Indian Test team captain back in 2022 after the tour of South Africa.

Virat Kohli and Sourav Ganguly had gotten into a huge altercation when Kohli relinquished the T20I captaincy after the T20 World Cup 2021. While Ganguly and then BCCI chief selector Chetan Sharma said that they had tried to convince Kohli not to step down as T20I captain, later on, he was relieved of ODI leadership as well.

Conflicting accounts of the T20 decision and how Kohli was notified of his ouster as ODI captain during a routine call with the selectors led to a direct confrontation between Kohli and BCCI chairman Sourav Ganguly as a result of these events.

BCCI were not prepared for Virat Kohli leaving the Test captaincy: Sourav Ganguly

On January 16, 2022, less than 24 hours after India lost the series in South Africa, Kohli abruptly announced his resignation as Test captain, adding another unexpected twist to his captaincy tale. The conflict between Kohli and the Indian cricket board over how, when, and why his T20 and ODI captaincy spells ended between October and December of last year came to a conclusion with Kohli's decision to resign as Test captain.

Former India captain and BCCI President Sourav Ganguly has said that the board was not ready for Virat Kohli to step down as India Test captain, which was his personal decision.

"BCCI were not prepared for Virat Kohli leaving the Test captaincy. It was unexpected for us also after the South Africa tour. Only Virat Kohli can reveal why he left the captaincy. There is no point talking about this now because Virat Kohli left the Test captaincy. Selectors had to appoint an India captain. And Rohit was the best option at that time," Sourav Ganguly told Aaj Tak.

Notably, Kohli concluded his term as the Indian captain with 40 triumphs and 11 draws in 68 games, ranking him as the fourth-most successful skipper in Test history. He holds the third-highest win rate (50%) among all 28 Test captains who have commanded a team in 40 or more games.