Gambhir sparks controversy: Dhoni unlike Ganguly handed over to Kohli a team that lacked quality players

Current India skipper Kohli, completely took over the reigns of the Indian team from Dhoni, in 2017. And now, Gambhir has alleged that the team handed down to the flamboyant batsman lacked quality.

The former India opener went on to compare the team that Dhoni handed over to Kohli to the one Sourav Ganguly handed over to Dhoni. Gambhir was of the opinion that Kohli and Rohit Sharma were the only two quality players from the team that Dhoni handed over.

Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Gambhir said, “When MS Dhoni finished (his captaincy stint), he hasn’t given enough quality players to Virat Kohli, apart from Virat Kohli himself and Rohit Sharma, or Jasprit Bumrah now. There are not too many world-beaters, or probably people who win you tournaments.”

“But look at what Sourav Ganguly gave to Indian cricket: Yuvraj Singh, Man of the Series in two World Cups, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Virender Sehwag - these kind of world beaters,” he added.

Gambhir drew comparison between two of India’s greatest captains. Current BCCI president, Ganguly, captained the Men in Blue to 21 wins in 49 Tests, after taking over the job in 1999. Under his captaincy the Indian side made it to the final of the 2003 World Cup, but lost to Australia in the final clash.

Meanwhile, his successor, Dhoni, guided India to victory in the maiden T20 World Cup. Four years later, the Indian side picked up the 2011 ODI World Cup and also guided India to the Champions Trophy.

The wicket-keeper captain, whose future now hangs in the balance, became India’s first-ever captain to lead the Indian team to all three ICC Trophies.

Following these two successful skippers, Kohli took over the Test captaincy in 2014, before taking over complete control in 2017. But brilliant a player as Kohli might be, his captaincy has come under radar several times.

The lack of silverware from any major tournament adds pressure on the current India captain. Kohli has made his mark as the most successful India Test captain, winning 33 out of 55 matches, but the elusive trophy from a major event has put his captaincy in question. And to further thicken the plot, Gambhir pointed out the team dynamics, stating that Kohli was given a team which lacked match-winners.

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