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Every team has so many people responsible for its success, the faults, and failures, efficient executions, etc. However, it is the captain of the team who is the face of the team is not just good times but bad moments too.

However, overburdened responsibilities, be it of any kind is never good for a side as it not only hampers the team's progress but it also exacerbates the player's morale and performance.

To avert all this, the concept of split captaincy came into existence. To ensure a perfect balance between a national team's squad in different formats, teams have begun to have different captains for different formats of the game.

However, today we will focus on how and why team India needs to make the most and make use of having different captains.

When Mahendra Singh Dhoni retired from test cricket in 2013, Virat Kohli took the reigns in his hand, and after eight years, we can say that he is still India's best option as the skipper.

Some people do feel that even Ajinkya Rahane possesses what it takes to be a good leader but Kohli's domineering attitude with the bat and while fielding, his tenacious energy is something that we surely need to have in Test Cricket.

In January 2017, MSD stepped down from the role of a captain from the limited-overs format as well, and then it was Virat Kohli who was perhaps the only contender for the vacancy.

But we all know that time flies, isn't it? Do you still feel India should not adopt split captaincy now? Let's have a look at some reasons why split captaincy is not an option but a compulsion for team India.

Less pressure on a single player

If there is a captain that leads his country in Tests, while the other leads them in the limited-overs format, the pressure of both, performing individually and captaincy duties alleviates.

Even in the worst case, losses in both formats would lead to two leaders taking the pressure. That not just reduces their burden but also opens an opportunity for a different way to tackle the pressure.

If both the captains are regular players in all formats, in India the other probable captain being Rohit Sharma, they could provide different alternatives as to how to get back in form. They can help each other in rectifying errors and even on a personal level, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are two personalities who can be a guiding light for one another.

Ample rest ensuring you always give your best

Considering Rohit Sharma's successful and ongoing captaincy tenure with Mumbai Indians, he is India's alternative for Virat Kohli. 

Like we discussed before, pressure plays a huge role in captaincy and despite Kohli's enormous pressure tackling capacities, the last couple of years have been evident that immense pressure does affect his batting. 

Not that Rohit outperforms Kohli during pressure situations while batting, but IPL has shown that Rohit is more clutch compared to Kohli in decisive moments. Again, there is a significant difference between delivering in international cricket and doing it in IPL, but Sharma's consistent decision-making does force you to think.

For example, Shikhar Dhawan leading India on the Sri Lanka tour not only takes the pressure off Kohli but also helps him get more rest, and focus solely on the upcoming series against England.

Success ratio

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have been two of India's most decorated players for years now and only numbers will never justify or prove that one is better than the other. 

In India at least, both Kohli's and Sharma's captaincy stats cannot be compared directly as Kohli has led India in much more games than Rohit, while Rohit has been leading Mumbai Indians for a long time now.

Rohit Sharma IPL India
Rohit Sharma is the most successful IPL skipper (Image Credits: IPLT20)

Yes, their IPL statistics can be taken down and it is Rohit Sharma who is the clear winner in this race. But when we talk about success ratio, there have been differences spotted very evident when we check the status of other cricketing nations.

Let's compare some of the captains of Australia as to how their success ratios have varied. Australia had been following the split captaincy process for a while before Finch cemented himself as the limited-overs skipper.

Australian Captains in T20I

Captain WinLossSuccess/Win%
David Warner 8188.88
Steve Smith 4450
Aaron Finch222052.38

Note: Two of Finch's games were No Result (NR).

Let's now see some Australian captains in ODIs

Captains WinLossSuccess/Win%
Michael Clarke502170.42
Aaron Finch 231856.09
Steve Smith 252352.08

Both Clarke and Smith had 3 games that were NR.

* This shows how different captains can have different success percentages and the competition can only help a team to excel at every level.

Tactical difference

Every captain has his way of dictating things. While MSD did it from behind the stumps, took care of the field placement, and suggested bowlers stick to a plan of line and lengths, Virat Kohli also does a lot of the same stuff.

However, Kohli is more aggressive in his approach and he tends to change tactics very frequently. On the contrary, Rohit Sharma has shown over the years that he allows the players to make their calls. 

No doubt, both Dhoni and Kohli allowed them too but with Rohit Sharma, the final say mostly stays with the bowlers. Here we see a significant difference in the approaches of all three captains. 

Similarly, Kohli may tend to make changes based on quick responses, Sharma just like MSD, tries to stick to some basic plans even if the output is different from what they anticipated.

Every approach has its pros and cons but the fact that you won't see Kohli opening his bowling innings with a spinner, something that commenced from MSD and has been used quite often with Rohit, the latter have been more clutch in not this decision specifically but on an overall basis.

MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli
MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli (Image Credits: CricketWorld)

One more and perhaps one of the biggest reasons why India should opt for split captaincy is that we may just get Kohli to bat effectively for more years as compared to if he continues to lead the side in all formats.

Kohli the captain has been great but it's Kohli the batsman who has soared to new heights on so many occasions and is also regarded as one of the generational batsmen that the sport has seen or will see.

Kohli could stick to being the captain of India's test side, focusing on new records on away tours, and his batting in both, test and limited-overs cricket.

For Sharma, you never know. The way he deals with pressure as a skipper is commendable and trustworthy but we still need to offer him an opportunity to get a clear idea of his capabilities.

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