Virat Kohli hints at his successor as India's captain in T20Is: 'He's looking over things for a while now'

Indian captain Virat Kohli is leading India for the final time in T20Is in their last Super 12 clash against Namibia in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2021 at the Dubai International Stadium in Dubai on Monday (November 08). Kohli has already announced that he will be stepping down as the captain of the Indian team in T20Is post the conclusion of the showpiece event.

India are already out of the T20 World Cup 2021 after two defeats and two wins in their first four matches. They lost to Pakistan and New Zealand in their first two Super 12 encounters before bouncing back to register two big wins against Afghanistan and Scotland in their next two games and remain alive in the race for semi-finals.

However, their fate remained in the hands of Afghanistan, who lost against New Zealand by 8 wickets on Sunday to confirm India's ouster. Ahead of his last game as India's T20I captain against Namibia on Monday, Kohli hinted at Rohit Sharma being his successor in the shortest format.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

Rohit, who is currently India's vice-captain in the limited-overs format, has been backed by many to take over the mantle from Kohli in T20Is. Rohit is the frontrunner to replace Kohli as India's captain in T20Is and is likely to take charge in the upcoming T20I series against New Zealand at home.

"I've been immensely proud of how the team has played. Now I think it's time for the next lot to stake this team forward. Obviously, Rohit is here and he's overlooking(overseeing) things for a while now," Kohli said during the toss ahead of India's game against Namibia in the T20 World Cup on Monday.

"It's been an honour for me, I was given the opportunity and I tried to do my best. But it's also time to create some space and move forward," Kohli added.

Also Read:Not an excuse, but would have liked bigger gap between IPL and T20 World Cup 2021: Ravi Shastri

Kohli had taken over as India's full-time captain across all three formats in 2017 and has since led the team to greater heights across formats. He will continue to lead the side in Tests and ODIs while playing as a pure batter in the shortest formats.

Kohli is the leading run-getter in T20Is at present with 3227 runs in 95 matches at a stunning average of over 52. It is also the last game in charge for Ravi Shastri as the head coach of the Indian team. Shastri will be replaced by the legendary Rahul Dravid after the conclusion of the T20 World Cup 2021.