Virat Kohli breaks silence on why he quit India’s Test captaincy in 2022 (Img: Internet)
New Delhi: More than four years after resigning as India’s Test captain, Virat Kohli has spoken candidly about the emotional exhaustion and pressure that led to his decision to step away from leadership in 2022.
Kohli, who remains India’s most successful Test captain, said the combined responsibility of leading the side and carrying the batting unit eventually drained him mentally and physically.
Speaking during the RCB Innovation Lab event, Kohli admitted he became “completely consumed” by the demands of captaincy during the final phase of his tenure.
If I have to prove my worth and value, that place is not for me: Virat Kohli
Kohli said he did not initially realise how deeply leadership responsibilities were affecting his personal life and mental space. According to him, the constant pressure to keep Indian cricket at the highest level left little room for self-reflection or recovery.
Virat Kohli has finally revealed why he stepped down as India’s Test captain in 2022.
“I was completely spent… there was nothing left in the tank,” Kohli said, opening up about the emotional and mental pressure#ViratKohli #TeamIndia #TestCricket #Cricket #Kohli #BCCI pic.twitter.com/Io0nutm8MO
— Dynamite News (@DynamiteNews_) May 20, 2026
“I was completely spent. There was nothing left in the tank,” Kohli said, recalling the period before he resigned as captain after India’s 1-2 Test series defeat in South Africa in January 2022.
He added that leadership required him to constantly focus on the needs of teammates and team management, often at the cost of his own wellbeing.
Kohli’s tenure as Test captain remains one of the most successful periods in Indian cricket history. He led India in 68 Tests and registered 40 victories, making him the country’s most successful captain in the format.
His captaincy journey began in 2014 during the Adelaide Test against Australia when MS Dhoni was unavailable. Kohli announced himself with twin centuries in that match before officially taking over leadership later that year.
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Under Kohli and head coach Ravi Shastri, India dominated world Test cricket for several years. The team won the ICC Test mace for five consecutive seasons and achieved a historic Test series win in Australia during the 2018-19 Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Reflecting on the emotional side of leadership, Kohli said he eventually realised that for nearly nine years, nobody had asked him how he was coping personally. He explained that leadership often demands complete selflessness, where personal struggles are pushed aside in pursuit of team success.
Kohli’s remarks have sparked conversations around mental fatigue, athlete burnout and the unseen pressure faced by modern sports leaders at the highest level.
