March 2008 : A brash Delhi boy ran around in circles, shouting "come on" till his voice choked after India won the under-19 World Cup under his captaincy in Kuala Lumpur. Detractors shook their head at his "theatrics".
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December 2014: Stand-in captain Kohli led a charge at an improbable target of 364 against Australia. India shunned the option of a draw and lost by 48 runs. Critics hailed his innings but wondered if he was needlessly aggressive.
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Cut to the present . Having led India to an unassailable 3-0 lead over England, Kohli's evolution from precocious talent to reigning colossus seems complete. The fourth Test in Mumbai saw the three dimensions of Kohli shine through the batsman, the captain and the cricket statesman, even if he is only 28.
He broke England's back with a superlative 235, his third double ton since July; never let the visitors breathe easy with his pro-active and clear-headed captaincy, and made a sagacious intervention to douse the fires when Ashwin got into a spat with Anderson over comments the English pacer had made about Kohli himself.
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With Kohli has come a new culture into Team India where skill, attitude, ambition and prudence merge to make for a potent cocktail. With coach Anil Kumble lending considerable weight as a teacher, tactician and motivator, Kohli has gone about fashioning a bunch of talented, fearless yet thoughtful cricketers who relish a challenge.
It's interesting to note that while Kohli has trimmed his own stroke-play to help him make daddy hundreds in Tests, he hasn't ever asked the youngsters in his team do the same, allowing them to dare and dream. Because, at their age and situation, he was the same. Most importantly, Kohli has taken the team out of a primarily defensive mindset which used to bedevil our cricket like a shackle. One hopes, it stays this way.
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Everything he does on the field makes it obvious that Virat has matured and has much better control over himself as a player and as a person. He has worked hard at it. The best part, though, is that he has not let his growing maturity in any way dull a rather primal competitive urge in him. In fact, he has now become a more formidable adversary as a player and captain and the biggest threat bowlers around the world face today .