Virat Kohli’s Test Legacy: Captain fantastic who ended India’s overseas woes with bat and bravery

Virat Kohli – majestic bat, and Captain Fantastic who banished India’s away-day blues. (BCCI)

As Sachin Tendulkar packed his kitbag one final time at the Wankhede Stadium in November 2013, one of the team’s juniors went up to him and handed over the sacred wrist threads that his later father had once given him. Both Virat Kohli and the man he had grown up idolising were in tears.

Kohli had driven the first ball he faced following Tendulkar’s dismissal to the cover fence for four. Those few seconds were enough to convince many that the No. 4 position that had been Tendulkar’s for so long would be in safe hands. But it wasn’t that easy.

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A few months later, Kohli returned from a Test tour of England with 134 runs in 10 innings. Without delay, he went to Mumbai and spent a couple of days practising, with Tendulkar watching and making some suggestions. In the half-decade that followed, he would dominate Test attacks as perhaps only Tendulkar among Indian batters had done before him.

In 55 Tests after that England tour, Kohli averaged a staggering 63.65 while making 21 centuries. As many as 11 of those were away from home, with eight coming in Australia, England and South Africa – traditionally places where Indian batters had struggled. There’s little doubt that Kohli leading from the front played a huge role in India becoming the best Test side in the world.

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His Test career had begun ignominiously in 2011, with 75 runs from five innings in the Caribbean, a performance so mediocre he wasn’t picked for the tour of England that followed. But starting with a century in Adelaide and a superb, batting 75 in Perth on the tour of Australia four months later, Kohli slowly carved out a niche for himself in whites.

When MS Dhoni retired midway through the Australia tour in 2014-15, having already missed the Adelaide Test, it was Kohli that took over the reins. Straight away, the mindset change was palpable. Most Indian captains in the past had gone abroad trying to avoid defeat. Kohli was determined to play on the front foot, with his team chasing wins.

.First T20, now Test Rohit Sharma & Virat Kohli retire together.Two icons. One unforgettable era.Indian cricket will be grateful for the legacy you both leave behind.#ViratKohli | #RohitSharma | #TestCricket pic.twitter.com/AM4zTcVjbZ
Indian Cricket Team (@incricketteam) May 12, 2025

It didn’t always work. A closely fought series was lost 4-1 in England in 2018, though Kohli redeemed himself spectacularly with 593 runs. But from each such setback, India would rebound stronger. That England loss would provide the fuel for a historic first series win on Australian soil a few months later, with Kohli’s century in Perth one of the highlights even though that particular game was lost.

In all, he made 9,230 runs at 46.85, and only Tendulkar (51), Rahul Dravid (36) and Sunil Gavaskar (34) have scored more than his 30 centuries for India. But it’s as captain that Kohli leaves behind the greatest legacy, with an incredible 40 Test wins in 68 Tests. Whether it was a green top in Melbourne or Johannesburg or a square turner in India, Kohli’s team wouldn’t take a backward step. It’s that attitude that Indian cricket