Former South Africa pacer Dale Steyn has picked a former Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) star to take over the captaincy from Virat Kohli after the completion of the ongoing fourteenth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Notably, just a few days after announcing to leave the T20I captaincy for Team India post the T20 World Cup 2021, the 32-year-old dropped another bombshell that IPL 2021 will be his last as a captain of RCB.
Not to forget, Kohli is still in the hunt for his maiden IPL title with the Bangalore-based franchise since the beginning of the cash-rich league.
Steyn named former RCB player KL Rahul as his choice for the next captain of the team. Rahul is currently the skipper of Mohali-based franchise Punjab Kings (PBKS). The 38-year-old suggested that Bangalore should pick Rahul if they are looking for a long-term replacement for Kohli.
“If RCB are going to look at a long-term contender as captain, they should be looking within their own borders. The name I’ve got is an ex-Bangalore player. It’s KL Rahul. I just have a feeling he is going to return back to Bangalore in next year’s auction,” Steyn told ESPNCricinfo.
After Kohli announced that IPL 2021 would be his last season as captain, many fans and experts felt AB de Villiers was the right choice for Kohli’s replacement as the leader of the side. However, Steyn felt that RCB must look beyond De Villiers as he is at the end of his career and won’t be able to captain the team for long.
“I don’t think AB de Villiers is the right way to go. I think he is a phenomenal player. But he is at the end of his career. I think he is a great leader. But if RCB are going to look at a long-term contender as captain, they should be looking within their own borders. It’s KL Rahul,” added Steyn.