Virat Kohli Silences T20 Captaincy Talk: ‘Don’t Dig Up Things That Don’t Exist’

Dubai: Virat Kohli had taken the cricketing fraternity by surprise when he announced on social media last month that he would be quitting India’s T20 captaincy after the World Cup.

In a detailed note on Twitter, Kohli had explained that his decision was based on “immense workload over the last 8-9 years playing all three formats and captaining regularly over the last 5-6 years.”

Many, however, took that with a pinch of salt and felt there was more to it than meets the eye.

On Saturday, as journalists brought up the issue, Kohli refused to get into any debate on the rationale behind his decision to quit T20 captaincy, saying that he won’t provide fodder to controversy seekers.

“I have already explained myself a lot and I don’t think I need to harp on that anymore,” Kohli said when he was asked why he made the announcement before the T20 World Cup.

“Our focus is to play well in this World Cup and do what we need to do as a team. Rest people are trying to dig up things that don’t exist and I am not someone who is ever going to give fodder to that,” said an irritated Kohli on the eve of India’s T20 World Cup opener against Pakistan.

“I have explained myself very honestly and openly and if people feel there’s more to it than what I have already told, I feel pretty bad for them. That’s certainly not the case,” he stated firmly.

A number of theories have been floating about Kohli’s sudden decision, like he had lost faith and trust of some players in the team and BCCI had spoken to him that it was time he delivered as a captain in white-ball format and won an ICC trophy.

Also Read: Fact Check: Did R Ashwin Complain Against Captain Virat Kohli To BCCI?