'I didn't remove Kohli from captaincy'

Sourav Ganguly says he did not remove Virat Kohli from the team captaincy.

Kohli's decision to step down from T20I captaincy post the 2021 World Cup was followed by his surprising relinquishment of ODI and Test captaincy within a short span.

In contrast to Kohli's assertion that he wished to continue ODI and Test captaincy, Ganguly, who was the BCCI president at the time, clarified that Kohli was urged to continue leading in T20Is to avoid having two different captains in white-ball cricket.

'I didn't remove Virat from captaincy,' Ganguly clarified on Dadagiri Unlimited Season 10.

'He wasn't interested in leading in T20Is. After he made that decision, I told him if you're not interested in leading in T20Is, it's better if you step down from entire white-ball cricket. Let there be a white-ball captain and a red-ball captain.

'I pushed Rohit Sharma a bit to take up the captaincy role because he wasnt interested in leading in all three formats of the game,' Ganguly revealed.

'So, maybe I have a bit of contribution in that, but no matter who is administrating, it's the players who perform well on the field.'

Kohli led India in 68 Tests, achieving 40 victories and becoming the most successful Indian Test captain. He also captained India in 95 ODIs and 50 T20Is.