The duo of Ravi Shastri and Virat Kohli scripted and achieved several milestones. Since the Kohli-Shastri era began in 2017, Team India has won on several occasions and new benchmarks were set in the team, with respect to fitness, player performance among other things.

The duo’s biggest achievement can be said came in 2018-19 when India won the Border Gavaskar Trophy against Australia in their own backyard. Even though India, as a cricket team, is a force to reckon with, they lacked the big thing, said former India captain Kapil Dev.

India failed to win any ICC trophy during the Shastri-Kohli era. During an interview with ‘Uncut’, Dev noted that even though the duo did a “super job”, they lacked the “big thing”.

“I think both have done a super job. I understand that they could not win India a major trophy but if we look at the last five years, since Kohli took over, there has been nothing lacking. The big thing lacking is an ICC trophy. Apart from that, India has won against Australia, England”, the World Cup-winning captain said.

“Wherever they have travelled, they have beaten the other team”, he continued.

The flamboyant all-rounder explained that reaching the knockouts in a World Cup is a “huge deal”. But the Men in Blue have always faltered in the T20 World Cup.

“Reaching the World Cup knockouts is also a huge deal. I think after the 2007 World Cup in West Indies, where they failed, this T20 World Cup is where it felt that India were disappointing. Had they reached the top four and then lost, it is understandable. But if you don’t reach the top four, there will be criticism”, he stated.

Talking about Shastri and Kohli’s partnership, Dev had only praises for both of them.

“If you look at it from a trophy point of view, that’s a different thing altogether”, he said.

“But if you look at their cricket, the brand they have played in the last five years, I would give them 90% marks out of 100, and deduct 10% marks for not winning an ICC trophy“, he concluded.