Kohli need not show his aggression every time, says Arjuna Ranatunga

What's the story?

Former Sri Lankan captain, Arjuna Ranatunga, expressed his opinions about Virat Kohli in a recent interaction with the press. According to Ranatunga, Kohli has made his mark as a batsman but has a long way to go before achieving identically significant milestones in the role of a captain.

Talking about the Indian skipper, Ranatunga said, "I have seen him as a batsman but I still can’t rate him as a captain; as a batsman, I rate him very highly. I am not putting him down as captain but he has a long way to go to achieve a lot of things."

"If you want me to compare him now with Indian top captains like (Mohammad) Azharuddin, Dhoni and if I take captains of my time like Kapil Dev, he has a long way to go. I still feel they were really top-class captains", he added.

In case you didn't know...

Ranatunga is the only Sri Lankan captain who led his side to a World Cup victory, back in 1996. Recently, he expressed his disappointment in the state of Cricket in his country. He also held the Sri Lanka Cricket responsible for the deteriorated standards of the game.

He slammed the Sri Lankan team for their poor performance against India in the ongoing Test series. India is currently leading the three match Test series by 2-0 after registering massive victories over the hosts in the first two games.

The details

While speaking about Kohli, Ranatunga also had a few suggestions handy for the Indian skipper. He advised that Kohli should remain sober and refrain from displaying unnecessary aggression on the field.

He explained that India and Sri Lanka represent a culture in Cricket which is different from the likes of Australia and England. He further elaborated by saying that the players should demonstrate their aggression in their game only when it's needed.

However, he believes that this nature of Kohli is majorly due to his young age and he will become more efficient in handling his emotions once he gains more experience.

What's next?

India will next take on Sri Lanka in the third Test scheduled to begin on 12th August at Pallekele.

Author's take

Kohli's aggression has always been a popular topic amongst cricketers. While some say that his aggression is a constant threat to his progress as a player, other believe that it is an honest reflection of his passion.

It is impossible to determine the black and white of this point. Hence, it is better to look at the gray areas and accept that different players have different methods of coping up with the stress during a game. Kohli's aggression is his way of handling the match pressure.

There is no denying that as a captain he can always work towards mellowing his approach a little. Moreover, a tat bit of aggression is not harmful. It will only add up to the ferocity of the competition.