In January of 2022, India was on the cusp of big changes in their cricket squad.
At the end of 2021, Indian cricket had moved on from the bombastic and over the top Ravi Shastri as the head coach, to the more 'correct' Rahul Dravid. More importantly, there was another key change in leadership - Virat Kohli had voluntarily stepped down as the T20I captain, post the World Cup in September.
In ODIs, Kohli wanted to continue to be in charge till the 2023 World Cup, but the powers-that-be made their own decision as they wanted one captain across the white-ball formats. So, when Virat travelled for the tour to South Africa in December for a three-Test series, he hoped to make a big statement by winning the series in the country for the first-time ever.
India appeared to be on course to make history when they quite easily overpowered South Africa in the first Test. But in the second Test, Kohli got injured and did not play. From thereon everything went wrong for India as they lost the series 1-2 after having led 1-0.
The proud Test record and legacy that Kohli had meticulously built over the years was left shattered. He no longer had the support system that he once had with Shastri as the head coach. Virat cut a lonely figure as he lost the captaincy in the white ball formats.
A Key South Africa Tour
It appeared as if Indian cricket was at a crossroads. India had lost a golden opportunity to hurt South Africa who were without their express paceman Anrich Nortje. So the day after the loss in the Test series, it was hardly a surprise that Kohli announced to the world that he was quitting the captaincy in the longest format as well.
India was left scurrying for their next leader in Test cricket, but Kohli surely felt let down with the lack of support from the system. He just did not have the backing anymore and he felt that it was the right time to move away rather than stay on in the leadership role.
On the pitch, Virat's runs had dried up, with his last century coming in November of 2019. He was not scoring the big hundreds and when he did look set, his scores were the middling type, which did not really do any favours to his lofty standards.
India moved onto the Rohit Sharma era, but Kohli’s returns with the bat continued to be ordinary. There appeared to be serious concerns about the former skipper's form and everyone wondered if they would ever see the man of the yore.
After having stepped down from RCB captaincy last year, Virat didn't have an impressive season in 2022 either, and at the cusp of summer, it appeared that the upcoming year was going to be a difficult one for the former Indian captain.
He went on the England tour to complete the Test series from last year, and it appeared that the short break did a lot of good to Kohli. In the Test, he was prepared to once again scrap with the English players, much like in the first part of the series in 2021. Kohli was not the captain but the cameras were still on him as he celebrated with gay abandon as always. He did show sparks in that Test, but India lost and had to settle for a drawn series.
Doubts Rose Over T20I Kohli's Spot
In the white-ball series that followed, Kohli once again seemed to be searching for runs. In the meanwhile, there were others who were rising in stature.
Suryakumar Yadav became the go-to man in T20Is, while Rishabh Pant emerged as India’s best batter in Tests, and in the ODIs in England played a breathtaking knock to underline his growing stature within the set-up. There were others who were returning to the T20I format like Hardik Pandya and Dinesh Karthik who also added muscle to the line-up.
In the backdrop of all this, it was beginning to emerge that maybe, just maybe, Kohli may not have a place in the T20I squad, after all.
England had done the same with their former Test captain Joe Root, dropping him completely from the T20 squad. Australia was wondering what to do with their former captain Steve Smith. Only New Zealand captain Kane Williamson appeared to be safe.
It seemed like the 'big four' of the Test match format were finding life difficult in the shortest format. So when Kohli took a break on the West Indies tour in July, it appeared as if the end was nigh, especially in the shortest format. With the T20 World Cup just a few months away, there was no way India could afford to risk playing an underperforming former captain in their line-up. The emergence of strikers and the return of some proven performers meant that Kohli was on borrowed time.
Yet the selectors and the team management were prepared to bide their time. They allowed Kohli a break and he appeared refreshed when he landed in Dubai with the Indian squad for the Asia Cup T20. The reactions of arch rivals, Pakistan, was the sweetest when they saw Kohli. They were all keen for him to return to form.
Return of 'King Kohli'
Afridi's wish proved to be a little too costly as Kohli took charge of the format like never before. India lost two crucial games in the Super Four stage in the Asia Cup, but it was Kohli who stood tall while the T20 specialists were left exposed. Kohli showed that there was no substitute for class in any format as he controlled the Indian innings expertly throughout the tournament.
Yet another disappointing performance in UAE by the Indian squad in the T20 format did not mean that Kohli would not want to finish on a high. He was promoted to open in the final Super Four stage game against Afghanistan with stand-in skipper KL Rahul, and all hell broke loose. Kohli demolished a tired Afghanistan to end his long running drought in scoring hundreds and that too in T20I cricket. He hit sixes at will to up the scoring rate and surprised himself with his ability to strike big while striking his 71st international hundred.
During the tournament he formed a new partnership with Suryakumar Yadav and even expressed his awe of the young man’s batting ability. But what really stood out during the tournament was Kohli’s candour in admitting that he was struggling mentally in the early part of the year. This admission won him a lot of admirers and showed a humane side of the champion batter.
Since his flourish at the Asia Cup, Kohli was in magical form in the T20Is at home against Australia and South Africa. There was little surprise that Kohli carried his form into the T20 World Cup and in the very first match against Pakistan played a magical knock of unbeaten 82 to light up the tournament.
His straight six off the express Haris Rauf is now probably going to be studied in laboratories to check the angle, trajectory and every possible thing associated with dismissing a cricket ball into the stands off a quick bowler. In the remaining games too, Kohli has been consistent and has emerged as the top run-getter thus far.
An Ideal Birthday Wish
On a day when he turns a year older, Kohli faces the tough challenge of leading India to an ICC title for the first time in nine years in the very first week of being 34. If there is any consolation for Kohli, the last time India won the ICC title, the Champions Trophy in 2013, the hero in the final with the bat was himself. So, there is a precedent.
If India harbours any hopes of making it to the final and then win the title, Kohli will be the man to do it because there is no stopping the man right now. Along the way there will be pin pricks like with a hotel staff invading his privacy or Bangladesh’s Nurul Hasan questioning his integrity. All through this, Kohli has maintained his dignity while choosing to respond with the bat.
He still does get excited as a fielder and celebrates like never before, but then that shows he is very much around.
We can only wish you a very Happy Birthday, though just hold onto the celebrations till November 13 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Nothing like a birthday party with 90,000 plus fans celebrating an India triumph and your century maybe? Just getting greedy!
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)