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'Virat Kohli will have to give up his ego' - Kapil Dev's shocking statement on Virat Kohli

Kapil Dev has said that Virat Kohli will need to keep his ego aside days after latter relinquishes India's Test captaincy

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Kapil Dev

Kapil Dev (Image Credit Twitter)

Virat Kohli stepped down as India's Test captain on Saturday. The move came a day after the team's Test series loss against South Africa. Kohli had led India for seven years in Test cricket and under his reign, the Indian team never lost a home Test series and were also at the pinnacle of the Test rankings for 42 months (October 2016-March 2020).

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After Virat Kohli relinquished Test captaincy, many came forward and thanked him for brilliantly leading the team from the front. Meanwhile, legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev has also reacted to Kohli's decision. Kapil welcomed Kohli's call as he felt that it will allow Kohli to play freely.

"I welcome Virat’s decision to quit the Test captaincy. He was going through a rough time ever since he gave up the T20 captaincy. He has looked tense in recent times, appeared to be under a lot of pressure. So giving up the captaincy was an option in order to play freely. He opted for that. He is a mature man. I am sure he must have thought hard before taking this important decision. Maybe, he wasn’t enjoying the captaincy. We have to support him and wish him luck,” said Kapil Dev while speaking to Mid-Day.

Kapil further said that Kohli should give up his ego and mentor the new captain and the team, adding that Kohli as a batter is must for the Indian team. The statement came amidst speculations that Kohli may announce retirement from the game "Even Sunil Gavaskar played under me. I played under K Srikkanth and Azharuddin. I had no ego. Virat will have to give up his ego and play under a young cricketer. This will help him and Indian cricket. Virat should guide the new captain, new players. We cannot lose Virat, the batsman…no way", the 1983 World Cup-winning skipper added.

Meanwhile, it has been reported that Rohit Sharma will be appointed as Kohli's Test successor and thus, become India's all-format captain. At the same time, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah, and Rishabh Pant are in contention to be named the Test team's next vice-captain.

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