India vs England: Virat Kohli on the cusp of equalling MS Dhoni’s elite captaincy record in 4th Test

February 28, 2021

With an aim to qualify for the final of the ICC World Test Championship, Team India will host England in the 4th and the final Test match of the series at the Narendra Modi Stadium from March 4. After being stunned in the opening Test match, India made a solid comeback and registered two back-to-back wins.
They won the second Test by 317 runs and registered a comprehensive 10-wicket win in the 3rd Test, which was played with pink balls, to go 2-1 up in the series. India are just a step away and have to either win or draw the 4th Test to qualify for the final.
Going into the 4th Test, Indian skipper Virat Kohli will equal an elite captaincy record presently held by MS Dhoni. The former India captain, who captained the Test side for 6 years, led India in 60 matches. With this, he sits at the top spot on the list of most matches as India Test captain.
Kohli, who took over from Dhoni during the Australia tour in 2014/15, is just one Test short and will equal the India legend next week. Though he will have to wait to go at the top spot as India’s next Test fixture is in June (if they qualify for the final). Following that, India are also scheduled to play 5 Test matches against England Down Under in August-September.

Talking of wins, Kohli is India’s most successful Test captain with 35 victories and 14 defeats. Under him, India have only lost 2 home Test fixtures. Dhoni finished his Test captaincy career with 27 wins.
Following Dhoni and Kohli on the list of most matches as captain are Sourav Ganguly, Mohammed Azharuddin and Sunil Gavaskar. Ganguly captained India in 49 Tests while Azhar and Gavaskar donned the captain’s hat in 47 matches.