Kane Williamson vs Virat Kohli: Statistical comparison (Test captaincy)
New Zealand and India will square off in the inaugural ICC World Test Championship final, starting June 18. The Kane Williamson-led side, who were the first to qualify for the finale, would fancy the familiar conditions in Southampton. Meanwhile, Virat Kohli aims to extend India's winning spree in the longest format. We compare the captaincy numbers of Williamson and Kohli in Test cricket.
Kohli is India's most successful captain in Test cricket. Under him, India have won 36 of 60 Tests and lost 14. Meanwhile, 10 of them have resulted in a draw. He broke the record of former Indian captain Dhoni in 2019 by registering his 28th win as Test captain. Captain Kohli is presently tied with legend Clive Lloyd in terms of Test wins (36).
Williamson is one of the most astute captains in modern-day cricket. He took over the reigns from Brendon McCullum in 2016. Ever since, Williamson has led New Zealand to 21 wins in 35 Tests. While NZ have lost eight Tests under him, as many as six have resulted in draw. Notably, Williamson and Kohli have the same win percentage as captains in Tests (60).
Kohli and Williamson have attained several feats as captain at home. The former has led India to 23 wins in 30 home Tests. Notably, India have lost only two such Tests under Kohli. Besides, Williamson has won 16 out of 22 Tests at home, having lost just one. While Kohli is yet to lose a home Test series as captain, Williamson has lost one.
Williamson's captaincy experience in away Tests is way less than that of Kohli. In his leadership, New Zealand have won only three out of 10 Tests away from home, having lost six. On the other hand, captain Kohli has won 13 out of 30 away Tests (lost 12). In fact, he is the only Indian captain to have won a Test series Down Under.
Kohli and Williamson have thrived as batsmen after taking up leadership roles. While leading, Kohli owns a staggering 5,392 runs at a phenomenal average of 58.60. The tally includes 20 hundreds. Williamson has tallied 3,078 runs at 62.81 as captain (11 hundreds). In winning cause as captain, Kohli has amassed 3,328 runs at 61.62. Besides, Williamson owns 2,210 runs at 78.92 in such Tests.
The rivalry between Kohli and Williamson dates back to the 2008 Under-19 WC. A young Kohli helped India U-19 win the semi-final against Williamson's NZ U-19. Ever since, the two stalwarts have had high regards for each other. The duo will now be seen in action in the ICC WTC final. Notably, India are win-less in away Tests against NZ under Kohli.
