Tom Moody calls Virat Kohli's white-ball captaincy "era of disappointment"
Former Australian cricketer and IPL-winning coach Tom Moody has delivered a harsh verdict on Virat Kohli’s white-ball captaincy, calling it “an era of high expectation, but ultimately, disappointment” despite India’s strong win-loss record under his leadership. Speaking on the Rise of Champions programme on JioHotstar, Moody and former India spinner Harbhajan Singh both expressed their disappointment that Kohli’s talented squads failed to win any major ICC trophies in limited-overs cricket. The criticism comes as India prepares to defend their T20 World Cup title in February 2026.
“Should have won three or four trophies”
Harbhajan Singh reflected on the quality of squads Kohli had at his disposal and felt India should have won far more silverware during his tenure. He said,
“The kind of team Virat had, they could have won three or four trophies. Nahi jeete kuch toh karan honge, but I still feel unke paas achhi team thi (If they did not win, there must be a reason, but I still think he had a solid team).”
India’s white-ball failures under Kohli include a humiliating 180-run defeat to Pakistan in the 2017 Champions Trophy final, an 18-run semifinal loss to New Zealand while chasing just 240 in the 2019 World Cup, and early exits from the 2021 T20 World Cup after heavy defeats to Pakistan and New Zealand in the group stages.
Team selection a major concern
Former India batsman Sanjay Manjrekar pointed to team selection as a persistent issue during the Virat Kohli-Ravi Shastri era. He said,
“Team selection under Ravi and Virat was always my biggest concern.”
Manjrekar’s comment suggests that questionable selection choices may have contributed to India’s inability to convert their talent and regular bilateral success into ICC trophy wins.
Tom Moody’s blunt assessment
Tom Moody, who won the IPL as coach of Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2016, summed up the Kohli captaincy era in one hard-hitting sentence. He said,
“The Virat Kohli era was an era of high expectation, but ultimately, disappointment.”
Coming from a former Australian captain and experienced coach, Moody’s words carry significant weight. His assessment reflects the broader cricket community’s view that despite Kohli’s aggressive leadership style and India’s dominance in bilateral series, the lack of ICC silverware remains a major gap in his legacy as white-ball captain.
AB de Villiers defends his friend
However, South African batting legend and Virat’s close friend AB de Villiers offered a contrarian perspective, saying it is unfair to judge captains solely on World Cup wins. He said,
“Frankly, it irritates me that people always judge a captain solely on whether they have won a World Cup. Saying ‘that guy is useless because he has not won a World Cup’ is unfair.”
De Villiers’ defense highlights the challenge of leading in an era where expectations are sky-high and even strong performances can be overshadowed by the failure to win knockout tournaments.
Virat’s white-ball captaincy record
Despite the criticism, Virat Kohli’s win-loss record as white-ball captain was actually quite impressive on paper. In T20Is, he led India in 50 matches, winning 30, losing 16, with two ties and two no results, giving him a win percentage of 60 percent. In ODIs, he captained India in 95 matches, winning 65, losing 27, with one tie and two no results.
Virat Kohli’s White-Ball Captaincy Record
Format | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | No Result | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
T20Is | 50 | 30 | 16 | 2 | 2 | 60% |
ODIs | 95 | 65 | 27 | 1 | 2 | 68.4% |
While the numbers show consistent success in bilateral series, the absence of major ICC trophies remains the biggest criticism of his tenure.
High expectations for 2026 T20 World Cup
The discussion took place as India prepares to defend their ICC T20 World Cup title in February 2026, with the tournament co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. India will begin their campaign against the USA on February 7 and have been placed in Group A alongside Pakistan, Namibia, Netherlands and the USA.
Former Australian captain Aaron Finch, who won the 2021 T20 World Cup, spoke about the pressure India face as favorites. He said,
“When you are an Indian team with so much experience and skill, people look at the team sheet and assume they have to win. It is a remarkable team, but that reputation carries its own weight as well.”
With Rohit Sharma now leading the team in white-ball formats and having already delivered the 2024 T20 World Cup, the pressure is on to continue that success and avoid the disappointments that marked the Kohli era.