As Virat Kohli bids goodbye to his favourite format, tributes have poured in and one which definitely stands out is of Ravi Shastri, the former India coach. Shastri called Kohli a class apart and the same could be said about their relationship as well.
Not many watched Kohli the captain as closely as Shastri. The duo weaved magic with the Indian team and while their white ball performance came under the scanner due to the lack of trophies, their red ball partnership took the Indian team to heights never seen before.
"He belonged to a different class of cricketers - He has been the most influential cricketer of the last decade," Shastri told Cricbuzz after Kohli announced his retirement. "There are many unforgettable memories, some which are immensely personal to me. He played a brand of cricket associated with no other Indian or captain. As I wrote in my social media post (on X, formerly Twitter), he is truly a modern-day giant."
Shastri, who was the head coach of India for 2014 to 2016 and later from mid 2017 to 2021, backed Kohli wholeheartedly. Kohli could commit to the brand of cricket he wanted to play because Shastri backed him to the hilt. Kohli too paid him back with results more often than not. The star cricketer also stood by Shastri's side when the then Indian coach was trolled on social media.
The personal chemistry of the duo combined with their tactical acumen made India a beast of a side across formats. Even though India lost at critical stages in ICC tournaments, the fact that they were one of the best in the world under Kohli-Shastri could not be denied. While the lack of white-ball trophies hurt their portfolio, the way India ruled Test cricket helped establish the legacy of Kohli the captain and Shastri the coach.
India were the best Test side in the world and finished top of the rankings in 2017, 2018 and 2019. The duo weaved its magic in Australia where India won back-to-back Test series in 2018-19 and 2020-21. India came close to beating South Africa in South Africa in 2017-18 and played their heart out in England in 2018. These were the years Indian Test team peaked and so did Kohli's batting.
The mutual respect that two had for each other and the freedom which the coach gave to his captain and his players, add to it the super confident demeanor of them both and you get what could be considered India's greatest coach-captain duo of all time.
