Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has once again showered praise on Virat Kohli, calling him not just a batting maestro but also a captain who transformed the face of Indian cricket. The Shastri-Kohli era, one of the most defining chapters in Indian cricket, saw the team scale unprecedented heights with fearless cricket both at home and overseas.
Kohli’s leadership journey began dramatically during the 2014-15 Australia tour, when MS Dhoni suddenly announced his retirement from Test cricket. By 2017, Kohli had become India’s all-format captain, while Shastri took over as head coach.
Together, they built a side that dominated world cricket — reaching the 2017 Champions Trophy final, the 2019 ODI World Cup semifinal, and the inaugural ICC World Test Championship Final in 2021. Under Virat Kohli, India held the No. 1 Test ranking for five consecutive years, a testament to the team’s consistency.
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Virat Kohli’s record as Test captain remains unmatched — 40 wins in 68 matches, the highest by any Indian skipper. While an ICC trophy eluded him during his captaincy stint, his aggressive mindset and unmatched intensity redefined India’s approach to the game. After stepping down as captain in 2021-22, Kohli eventually retired from T20Is in 2024, signing off with a World Cup triumph, and later bid farewell to Test cricket in May 2025.
“He did a magnificent job” 🙌
Ravi Shastri on what it was like to be India coach whilst Virat Kohli was captain 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/b142Hmgg5i
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) August 14, 2025
Speaking on Sky Sports, Ravi Shastri recalled, “It was great. He was the one man I identified who would lead the team. Once Dhoni had finished, he (Kohli) was the natural choice. His skills as a batter, his ability to dominate, to be in the opposition’s face, to play hard but fair, and his hunger to win were exceptional. In his prime, some of his knocks in Australia, South Africa, and England were unreal.”
While Kohli has stepped away from the red-ball and T20I formats, his ODI ambitions remain undimmed. With India’s Bangladesh tour postponed, the former captain wasted no time in preparing for the upcoming white-ball series in Australia this October. Recently, he was spotted training with Gujarat Titans’ assistant coach Naeem Amin, fine-tuning his game for the challenge ahead.
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By the 2027 ODI World Cup, Kohli will be 39, and debates over his longevity will intensify. However, his experience, mental toughness, and record in ODIs make him a vital asset for India. All eyes will be on him from October 19–25 in Australia, where he will look to remind the cricketing world why he remains India’s undisputed ODI king.
