It has been a while since Team India has won a major ICC tournament. Under Virat Kohli, the squad has already lost two ICC finals. Hence, it would not be a surprise if Kohli loses his captaincy in the coming months. In this article, we talk about six players who might captain Virat Kohli in the future.
Virat’s form with the bat is also reducing in recent months. This might force Virat himself to quit captaincy and focus on his batting. A similar scenario could happen in IPL, as well. Considering all these factors, here are six players who might captain Virat Kohli in the future.
1) Rohit Sharma
There is already calls for Rohit Sharma to be given the captaincy in limited-overs format for Team India. If Virat does not win the World T20 later this year, it is all but certain that he will have to forgo his captaincy in the shorter formats, at least. In that scenario, Rohit Sharma is likely to take over the reins for Virat. Since Virat would anyways be part of the Indian Team for a few more years, we might as well see him play under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy.
2) KL Rahul
Since Rohit Sharma is older than Virat, the management might think of choosing the next captain as someone who could be in the post for a few years. KL Rahul seems to be the perfect candidate if that happens. He also has the experience to pull off the job, although his form with the bat might have to improve. Hence, Rahul is one of the players who might captain Virat Kohli in the future.
3) Rishabh Pant
Rishabh Pant is the realistic candidate to be India’s future captain. He is the only youngster, at the moment, who is part of the Indian Team in all three formats. Moreover, he is a wicket-keeper and with MS Dhoni already justifying the case for wicket-keeper captains, Pant will be at the front of the list to be Virat’s long-term successor.
4) Shubman Gill
From every perspective, Shubman Gill looks to be a suitable option to lead in the future. Although this may not happen at least for a few more years, in the long-term, Gill’s name will definitely be in the running for the post. He is a talented batsman and seems to have a calm head on his shoulders. Hence, he could lead Virat in the future.
5) Devdutt Padikkal
RCB has persisted with Virat Kohli although the trophy has not been won. However, if Virat himself drops from the captaincy, RCB might have to make a bold decision of handing over the duties to someone younger. With the trend of youngsters being appointed as IPL captains picking up, Devdutt Padikkal could as well lead RCB and Virat in future seasons.
6) Shreyas Iyer
While the talks of Gill and Pant is happening, the management will surely not see past the option of Shreyas Iyer. In fact, Iyer has the most experience of operating as a captain, that too in a stage like IPL. He also seems to be a composed individual and meriting a captaincy responsibility.
