FATULLAH, June 9:
Virat Kohli’s proactive and aggressive style of leadership will be tested when India take on sprightly underdogs Bangladesh in the one-off cricket Test starting here tomorrow.
Kohli was anointed with full-time Test captaincy after Mahendra Singh Dhoni quit in the middle of the Australia series. The Bangladesh Test match will be, in essence, the start of a life without Dhoni for the team, which comprises cricketers of an average age of 26.
There will also be a sense of deja vu when Kohli walks out alongside his Bangladeshi counterpart Mushfiqur Rahim at the Khan Saheb Osman Ali Stadium tomorrow.
One of India’s most successful captain Sourav Ganguly also started as a full-time captain against Bangladesh some 15 years back in a one-off Test match that was played at Bangabandhu Stadium in Dhaka.
Only difference is, this is Kohli’s third Test as the skipper while that match marked Ganguly’s captaincy debut.
For Kohli, as he starts a new chapter in his so far glittering career, it will also be a test of his tactical acumen as he would need to decide on whether India would go with six batsmen and four bowlers with a specialist wicketkeeper or with an additional bowler to ensure that taking 20 wickets is not a problem.
On paper, it’s another David versus Goliath battle with India having won six out of the seven Test matches between the two countries. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel