'I feel bad for them', says Virat Kohli on people speculating over his decision to quit T20I captaincy
India's outgoing T20I captain Virat Kohli (R) with Ravi Shastri
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India's outgoing T20I captain Virat Kohli has said that he feels bad for people trying to dig out something which does not exist. Notably, numerous media reports and speculations popped up after the Kohli announced that he would step down from India's T20I captaincy after the ongoing T20 World Cup.
In the pre-match press conference ahead of India's T20I World Cup 2021 opener against Pakistan on Sunday, the 32-year-old was again asked about his decision and its timing, An irked Virat Kohli shunned the question by saying, "I have already explained myself a lot and I don't think I need to harp on that anymore," Kohli said when asked the reason to announce it before the T20 World Cup."
"Our focus is to play well in this World Cup and do what we need to do as a team. The rest of people are trying to dig up things that don't exist and I am not someone who is ever going to give fodder to that," Kohli, who was visibly irritated at the question, said.
"I have explained myself very honestly and openly and if people feel there's more to it than what I have already said, I feel pretty bad for them. That's certainly not the case," he added.
Earlier on Friday, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly there was no pressure from the BCCI on Kohli to quit the leadership role and it was his own decision.
"I was surprised (that Virat Kohli decided to step down as T20 captain). This decision must have been taken only after the England tour and it is his decision. There was no pressure from our end. We didn't tell him anything," Ganguly said at Aaj Tak's Salaam Cricket 2021.
"We don't do things like that because I myself have been a player so I understand. It is very difficult to be a captain in all formats for this long.
"I was a captain for six years, it looks good from the outside, there is respect and all that. But you get burnt out on the inside and it happens to any captain. Not just to Tendulkar or Ganguly or Dhoni or Kohli but to the captain that will come up next as well. It is a tough job."
Virat Kohli has also stepped down from the captaincy of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and will continue to play as a specialist batsman for the franchise from IPL 2022 onwards. The swashbuckling batsman has cited his workload management as one of the main reasons behind his decision.
