Ganguly: Virat will take Indian cricket forward

Virat Kohli struck yet another double century in his third consecutive series and bagged the Man of the Match award for his exploits. By showing immaculate maturity, Kohli helped the team post a good total on the board in the first innings. In the process, he also crossed 2000 runs in the calendar year and became the first Indian skipper to score three double centuries during that time.

After watching Kohli's exploits, Sourav Ganguly couldn’t help himself from praising the Indian skipper, for his desire to get big scores.  

In a conversation with India Today, Ganguly said, “The numbers can’t get better than this. If you look at his (Kohli’s) stats as skipper – 30 matches, 3000-plus runs at an average of 100. To have an average like that in 30 matches on a consistent basis is unreal. Hopefully, he continues to bat like this.”

He added, “I’ve said this before that when Virat Kohli plays you sit on the sofa and watch. Because you see a man who’s passionate, you see a man who wants to win, you see a man who wants to take Indian cricket forward.

“Future of Indian cricket rests on Virat Kohli if he continues like this. His hunger, his want for runs, he’s got a good head on his shoulders. The world will be at his feet in a few years’ time.”

Over the years, Kohli has evolved as a much better cricketer across every format. When the connoisseurs of the game started criticizing him for his defensive approach in chasing the wide outside the off-stump deliveries, he answered the critics with the bat and scored 3 double centuries within a span of just five months.

Ganguly praised the excellent game-reading ability of Kohli saying, “You look at the (second) Vizag Test – he came in when India were in a spot of bother, he knew how important that match was, he knew England were in a good position so he put the knockout punch by getting a big hundred.

“In Mumbai, India were again in trouble because they had to bat fourth in this match, Kohli not only got a hundred but he made sure he took the game away from England. So it’s not just about the 50-plus averages or the hundreds, but it’s a bit more than that with him. He just stamps his authority to win cricket matches for India be it in ODIs, Tests or T20Is,” Ganguly said.