I have learnt the most from MS Dhoni, reveals Virat Kohli
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Virat Kohli has mentioned that he has learnt a lot about captaincy in international cricket from Mahendra Singh Dhoni while standing close to him at first slip position. The India captain has also expressed that he has enjoyed his game so far and feels honoured to lead the national team.
Virat Kohli took over the Test captaincy in 2014 after the sudden retirement of MS Dhoni back then in Australia. However, he took over as the full-time captain of the Indian team in the limited overs format in January 2017 after Dhoni decided to step down as the leader of India's ODI and T20I squads. Dhoni led India to victory in 2007 T20 World Cup, 2011 World Cup and 2013 Champions Trophy. Kohli has been a prolific leader as well and under his leadership, India went into the finals of Champions Trophy in England last year. Kohli has stated that he gets a lot to know from the former India skipper and tried to pick up something or the other from Dhoni.
"I was always someone who kept talking to him (Dhoni) about the game so even when I was really
"I love thinking about the game and that’s why I enjoy captaincy so much and I enjoy chasing totals so much – I love using my brain to figure out what needs to be done during the game. I’ve learned the most from MS, standing so close to him at slip so many times and just observing him at close quarters."
Kohli also believes that every captain has a mindset and he wants to inculcate that into the team. Kohli has been a very positive character on the cricket field and he wants the Indian team to come out with the same positivity for each and every game they are playing.
"I think every captain flushes in the mindset that he has himself to his team and I’ve always played my cricket with positivity. When I do well or I don’t do well, it’s not about thinking twice, only going forward. Results are a bi-product of that mindset. I believe in giving total freedom to the guys to go out there and play the way they want to, and to be fearless. You can make mistakes by being positive, lack of execution is fine, but hesitation is something that I cannot relate to myself so I would never want the players to play that way," the Indian skipper said.
When asked about the biggest challenges he has faced as the skipper, Kohli replied, "Not many. I’ve really enjoyed myself so far. I just wanted to play cricket at this level and now I’ve been given such an honour to captain my country, I cannot complain at all. It allows me to set the right example and work hard, so I can expect my teammates to work as hard."
