Virat Kohli in a video message has confirmed that he will step down as the captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore after the end of the IPL 2021 season. The Indian skipper confirmed that he will play his last match in the RCB till the end, however, will not be leading the team as captain.
“This will be my last IPL as captain of RCB. I’ll continue to be an RCB player till I play my last IPL game. I thank all the RCB fans for believing in me and supporting me,” Kohli said. Kohli said he wanted to be clear about the decision, keeping in mind the mega auction in 2022. Kohli maintained that he will continue to play for RCB until he retires from the T20 format of the game. Kohli’s decision to give up RCB captaincy comes a week after he announced he would quit T20I captaincy after India’s campaign in the upcoming T20 World Cup. Kohli has been with RCB since the inception of IPL in 2008. He was appointed captain in 2011, but has been unable to win the trophy for the franchise. He was appointed as the successor of Daniel Vettori. Under him, RCB’s best show came in 2016 when the team reached the final, with Kohli leading from the front scoring 973 runs including four centuries. It is the most runs by any player in a single edition of the IPL. So far the side has won 62 of the 132 matches played under Kohli with 6 no results and 66 losses. Their best campaign came in 2016 when they reached the finals.
