Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri—two top men in Indian cricket after Secretary Jay Shah, have stepped down from their respective positions of power. India vs Namibia was duo’s last as captain and coach. Kohli and Shastri as a pair have created new benchmarks for India, these included Test match wins in England and Australia. Although they were unsuccessful in New Zealand, they managed to win their maiden ODI series in South Africa. Let’s have a look at the memorable series wins under Captain Kohli and Coach Shastri.
India Win Maiden Test Series in Australia (2018-19): Probably the biggest win for the duo of Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri, as India closed a well-fought series with a dull draw in Sydney. Both Kohli and Shastri wear their attitude on their sleeves and this probably rubbed off on the cricketers who made the hosts pay at MCG to take 2-1 series lead in the four-match series. They had earlier lost at Perth, but the visitors took the upper hand in Adelaide and made a winning start to a four-match Test series which not many teams have been able to do Down Under.
India Win Maiden ODI Series in South Africa (2017-18)-Shastri Kohli duo will be known for their resilience long after they are gone. One such valiant comeback happened for India in South Africa in January 2018. They had lost the series pretty badly (2-1) but made the hosts pay on a fast pitch in Johannesburg in the final Test. The win was a testament for the ‘New India’ which wouldn’t be cowed down. The media, which had been thrashing the team prior to this game, quickly changed their attitude. What followed was a major thumping to South Africa in their limited-overs cricketing history. India took the six-match series 5-1 with two new finds in Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal.
India Blank New Zealand in T20Is (2019-20): Although India have never showed any gumption in that remote corner of the world, but last year they did something which will go down in history as one of a kind. For years, Indian teams have surrendered in windy Kiwi island, but for the first time, the hosts were outplayed and how. India made 2-0 lead early on and then went onto win two successive super overs to build a 4-0 lead in five-match series. With that momentum, the final game also went to Men in Blue. However, what followed was a disaster as New Zealand exacted sweet revenge blanking India in ODIs (3-0) and Test series (2-0). Nonetheless, the 5-0 series win will remain with players and fans alike for a long time.
World Cup Semi-Final Finish (2019): Just like 2021 in UAE, India were the favourites in 2019 too. The only difference was-they delivered two years ago. In England, India started off by beating South Africa and mauled every other team: Pakistan, Australia, West Indies, Afghanistan to top the group. They, however, lost to England (eventual champions) and lost the only knockout game they played in the tournament against New Zealand. It was a crucial tournament for India under the duo as their partnership had reached its peak. Their inability to find a solid number four and inconsistent team selections were found out by the media and detractors soon after.
Superb Run in ICC World Test Championship: People might remember how India were outplayed in WTC final in Southampton against New Zealand, but they often forget that Kohli and his men played out of their skins to reach there. The WTC cycle began in August 2019 where India flourished against West Indies, blanking them 2-0 in their own soil. This was followed by home series wins against South Africa (3-0), Bangladesh (1-0), Australia (2-1) and England (3-1). India brought their ‘A’ game whenever a team came calling and played cricket on excellently prepared dustbowls.
India Come from Behind to Win in Sri Lanka (2015-16): This was one of the first and finest Test series wins overseen by the duo. Back in August 2015, India landed in Sri Lanka for three-match Test series and lost the opener in Galle. Chasing 176, which shouldn’t have been a stiff ask for this Indian lineup, Kohli’s side imploded on a deteriorating final day pitch. But they showed uncharacteristic gumption to come back in the next two games, beating the hosts in Colombo- P Sara Oval(2nd Test) and SSC (3rd Test) by 278 and 117 runs, respectively. The nonchalance shown by the players was never seen before by the most seasoned cricket journalists.
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