On the eve of their game against Kolkata Knight Riders, Virat Kohli has announced that this will be his last season as Royal Challengers Bangalore captain. Kohli while saying it was an easy decision in the interest of the team, added that he would continue with RCB till retirement from cricket.
“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,” Kohli said in a video posted by the franchise.
"It has been a great and an inspiring journey, captaining a talented bunch of players in the RCB squad," Virat said.
"I would like to take this opportunity to thank the RCB management, coaches, support staff, players, and the entire RCB family, who have been instrumental in the growth of the franchise over the years. It wasn't an easy decision but one that has been well thought of and in the best interest of this wonderful franchise. The RCB family remains close to my heart as we continue to strive to achieve excellence. As I have mentioned previously in many occasions, I will only play for RCB until my retirement from the game of cricket."
Prathmesh Mishra, Chairman, RCB said in a statement on Sunday evening, "Virat Kohli is one of the finest cricketers, and has been a true asset to RCB. His impeccable work ethics and leadership skills has been phenomenal. We respect and support this decision and would like to thank Virat for his incredible contribution to the RCB leadership group. He has left an indelible mark on the franchise and will continue to be a senior member of the team."
Kohli took over as captain of RCB in 2013 from Daniel Vettori and will finish with 9 seasons as the skipper of the franchise.
Under Kohli, RCB have won 60 of 132 games and lost 65. RCB’s best finish was in 2016 when they were losing finalists against Sunrisers Hyderabad. With Kohli at the helm, RCB also made it to the playoffs in 2015 and 2020. In 2016, he was the season's best batter as well. In 2019 and 2017, RCB finished at the bottom of the points table apart from coming sixth in 2018.
In the IPL, Kohli has played 199 games and scored 6076 runs with 5 hundreds and 40 half-centuries to his name. He is the leading run scoring in the tournament history so far. He has 33 fifties as captain.
Kohli’s 132 matches as captain in the IPL is only behind MS Dhoni.
On 16 September, Kohli announced on social media that he would be stepping down as captain of the Indian men's T20 team after the upcoming T20 World Cup in UAE and Oman.
When the IPL had been halted in May due to COVID-19, RCB were third on the points table behind Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super Kings. RCB had started the season well with 4 consecutive wins but lost against Chennai Super Kings and Punjab Kings.
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