Wasim Akram showers praises on Virat Kohli for not losing ‘intensity’ after leaving captaincy
Wasim Akram, Virat Kohli (Image Credit: Twitter)
There was a time when Virat Kohli was having a difficult phase regarding his captaincy in the Indian team. Around September last year, he announced that he would step down as T20I captain after the 20-20 World Cup 2021. At the same time, he also announced that he won’t lead the Bangalore franchise after the Indian T20 League 2021. A few months after that, he was ‘removed’ from the ODI captaincy ahead of the South Africa tour.
After the Tests series against the Proteas, the Delhi player decided to step down as Test captain as well. Currently, the 33-year-old is enjoying arguably his best form. Meanwhile, former Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram has praised Kohli by mentioning how the latter has moved on from the saga and is performing well.
“Instead of making a face, I got dropped as a captain and blah blah blah. I will just stand quietly at short fine-leg but he said no I got dropped as a captain, fine! I will play as a batter and also be the best fielder in the Indian side,” Akram said on A Sports.
Waqar Younis and Shoaib Malik also praise Virat Kohli’s attitude
On the other hand, former Pakistan skippers, Waqar Younis and Shoaib Malik also agreed with Akram.
“In Pakistan, you go home after you are dropped from captaincy. I don’t remember any player (from Pakistan) who has got dropped from captaincy and is making heads turn as a player,” Younis added.
“This is something we’ve got to learn from Virat Kohli. Here in Pakistan, if you’ve scored runs, then people roam around with their collars up. There’s no harm in doing that but always be a team man whether you have scored runs or not. His quality is that he plays the entire 40 overs with the same intensity. You will always see Kohli trying to help out the team in the field. It doesn’t matter whether he has scored a hundred or has been dismissed for a zero,” Malik said.
