Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has weighed in on the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB’s) decision-making regarding their leadership for the upcoming Indian Premier League 2025. With the RCB retaining only three players ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction, there are reports that Virat Kohli could return as the skipper. RCB retained Virat Kohli for a whopping amount of ₹21 crore.
“This is my problem because I don’t like being emotional. I don’t want to go away from the truth with hero worship like fans. In Test cricket, Virat Kohli is out of form, but India need him. But in T20s, I don’t think he is that great a player as he was 7-8 years ago,” Manjrekar told ESPNcricinfo.
“So, as a T20 player, can Virat Kohli make an impact? Because he is Virat Kohli, 95 percent fans want him to be the captain. But if you look at his performances, then his contributions haven’t been impressive enough,” Manjrekar said.
Virat Kohli has been at the helm in the past, leading RCB from 2013 to 2021. However, Manjrekar feels that Kohli’s performance in T20 hasn’t been perfect.
“Remove Virat Kohli and his stature from you mind and only look at his performances in the Incredible Premier League, his performances as a batter and performance as a captain. And think whether it’s the right decision to make him the captain again. Last season, he had a strike-rate of 150 and in the 120s in the previous seasons,” he added.