Virat Kohli, one of India’s most passionate and fiery cricket captains, has led his teams—both national and IPL—with unmatched intensity. While his tenure has included numerous achievements, there are a few records that even the most loyal fans would prefer not to remember. From historic lows in Tests to missed silverware in ICC and IPL tournaments, here are five records Kohli would likely want to forget.
1. India’s Lowest-Ever Test Score in Adelaide
One of the most painful moments in Kohli’s captaincy came during the Adelaide Test against Australia in 2020, where India was bundled out for just 36 runs in their second innings—the lowest score in Indian Test history. No batsman reached double digits, making it a shocking collapse for a team known for its resilience.
“𝑰𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒆. 𝑾𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒏𝒐 𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒂𝒚,” 𝒂 𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒊𝒐𝒓 𝑰𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒆𝒅𝒍𝒚 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉.
2. First Indian Captain to Lose by 10 Wickets in an ICC Event
In the 2021 T20 World Cup, India suffered a humiliating defeat to arch-rivals Pakistan, losing by 10 wickets—a first for India in any ICC tournament. Pakistan chased down the 152-run target without losing a wicket, with 13 balls remaining, delivering a bitter memory in Kohli’s leadership legacy.
3. RCB’s Lowest Total in IPL History
In the 2017 IPL season, Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore delivered a forgettable performance at Eden Gardens, being dismissed for just 49 runs against the Kolkata Knight Riders. It still stands as the lowest team total in IPL history.
“𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒅𝒂𝒚. 𝑾𝒆 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒍𝒚 𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒗𝒆𝒔,” 𝑲𝒐𝒉𝒍𝒊 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒅𝒆𝒇𝒆𝒂𝒕.
4. No ICC Trophy as India’s Captain
Despite captaining India in multiple ICC tournaments, Kohli could never lift an ICC trophy. Under his leadership:
- India lost the 2017 Champions Trophy final,
- Crashed out in the 2019 World Cup semi-final,
- We were defeated in the 2021 World Test Championship final,
- And exited early in the 2021 T20 World Cup.
5. No IPL Title with RCB
Kohli’s nearly decade-long captaincy of RCB ended without a single title. Even with top-tier talent in the squad, the team couldn’t clinch the trophy. He also has the second-most losses (70 matches) as an IPL captain, behind only MS Dhoni (97).
Though these records may cast a shadow over parts of his captaincy career, Kohli’s impact on Indian cricket remains monumental. But as with every great player, not all statistics are worth celebrating.
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