After the 2007 World Cup exit, India found two of their most successful captains- MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli. Both of them have had their own methods of captaincy, but their styles have helped India garner numerous laurels over the last 13 years or so. Former South Africa cricketer Shaun Pollock, in the meantime, put forth the importance of Dhoni and Virat to Indian cricket.

Dhoni took over the leadership mantle from the 2007 T20 World Cup in South Africa and tasted immediate success. Soon after, he was appointed as the ODI skipper and subsequently as the Test captain as well. In 2017, he handed over the captaincy to Kohli in all three formats.

However, he returned as captain for a solitary game during the 2018 Asia Cup against Afghanistan in Dubai. Pollock talked about the ‘intensity’ with which Dhoni played his cricket over the time being.

Shaun Pollock opines

“When Dhoni took over the captaincy, he brought an intensity to the party. He had a very calm demeanour in his captaincy. But when he got to the crease, he would be running hard between the wickets, the way he conducted himself, the way he marshalled his troops, it was very good,” Pollock was quoted as saying on Cricbuzz.

Pollock also lauded Virat for his immense dedication towards the game. Like Dhoni, even Virat is fit as a fiddle and is known for his strict diets and intense training sessions.

“And Kohli has continued to run with it. When I go for commentating for the India-South Africa series, at times, we finish the games early, and people go to their hotels. I might go to the gym, and I often see Kohli at the gym, after the day’s play. After they have won, and they could be celebrating, but he is at the gym,” he stated.

Pollock said that Virat has been able to carry on from where Dhoni left. “Dhoni was the one who set that intensity and Kohli took it to the next level,” Pollock added.

Both Kohli and Dhoni are currently busy playing in the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Even as MSD’s CSK have already been knocked out, RCB are among the firm favourites to qualify for the playoffs.