Ravichandran Ashwin has come out in support of Virat Kohli following remarks the former India captain made on RCB’s podcast with presenter Mayanti Langer, in which he said he was unwilling to prove his worth to anyone.
Kohli spoke on a range of subjects during the podcast, including his Test retirement, his aspirations for the 2027 ODI World Cup, and how he motivates younger players. It was his remarks on not needing to justify himself that drew the most reaction.
“My perspective is very clear. If I can add value to the environment that I am part of, and the environment feels that I can add value, I will be seen. If I am made to feel like I need to prove my worth and my value, I am not in that space,” Kohli said.
“If you go to a workplace and people say they believe in your abilities and a week later they start questioning the way you operate, it’s like, ‘Why?’ Either tell me on day one that I am not good enough or not needed. But if you have said I am good enough and you are not thinking otherwise, then be quiet,” he added.
While several fans pushed back on the remarks pointing to his statistics over the last five years in Tests Ashwin took a different view, saying Kohli has nothing left to prove after nearly two decades of winning matches for India and his IPL franchise.
“If Virat Kohli is saying that he doesn’t need to prove his worth to anyone, then he is right. There’s nothing left for him to prove to anybody. My thought process was the same, too. Who do I even have to prove anything to? After playing for so many years and winning many games for India, who does he still need to prove to?” Ashwin said during a video interaction.
Kohli, 37, remains a key part of India’s ODI setup after retiring from Test and T20I cricket. With the 2027 ODI World Cup over a year away, he has continued to hold his number three spot in the one-day side.
He is currently playing for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in IPL 2026, where the franchise sits at the top of the table with 16 points from 12 matches.
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