Indian cricketing legend and former head coach of the team, Ravi Shastri, is of the opinion that Virat Kohli is the natural choice to lead the team in the absence of current captain Rohit Sharma.

“If it’s for a major game like that, I want Rohit to be fit, he is the captain. But god forbid something happens under unforeseen circumstances, definitely I’ll look in that direction,” Shastri told ESPNCricinfo, after he was asked if Kohli should take the responsibility if Sharma is unavailable.

Shastri also said that Kohli should have been asked to lead the side for the postponed final Test of the England tour last year after Sharma was ruled out of the fixture.
“Once Rohit was injured, I thought Virat would captain. If I was still there – I’m sure Rahul (Dravid) might have done the same thing, I have not spoken to him – I would’ve recommended to the board that it’s only fair he leads because he was captain of the team that was leading 2-1 in the series and probably could have got the best out of the team,” Shastri added.

In 2021, when the Men in Blue were touring England, Kohli was the Test captain, leading the team to a 2-1 lead before the final Test was postponed by a year due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the visitors’ camp.

Between 2021 and the postponed game – which was played in July 2022 – Kohli stepped down from his captaincy duties, with Rohit Sharma taking over for him. However, Sharma was unavailable for the fifth Test, with the team then led by pacer Jasprit Bumrah.

India lost that fixture by seven wicketsKohli has also stepped away from his post as the captain of Indian Premier League team Royal Challengers Bangalore, but has been thrust back into the role after regular skipper Faf du Plessis picked up a rib injury.

“He’s in a very good space, enjoying his cricket. That’s the feeling I got as opposed to last year when we were sitting and discussing does he need a break, does he not need a break. He seemed to have the burden of the whole world on his shoulders,” Shastri said of Kohli’s resignation.

“Now it’s refreshing. The enthusiasm, passionate energy and enjoyment have come back, which for me was the best thing to see. Runs you might or might not get but when you see someone, and the passion, enjoyment and drive is back again, it’s good,” he added.