Kohli belonged to a different class of cricketers: Ravi Shastri

The former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri praised star batter Virat Kohli by calling him as the most influential cricketer of the past decade. The cricketer-turned-commentator acclaimed the Delhi-born cricketer as a modern-day great.

Shastri was one of the best coaches in Indian cricket setup and he teamed up with the Kohli to form the one of the most successful coach-captain duos in Indian cricket history. They were associated once from 2014 to 2016 and another period from 2017 to 2021.

India reached the semifinal in the 2019 World Cup and won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series twice in Australia, in 2018/19 and again in 2020/21, under their partnership.

"He belonged to a different class of cricketers - He has been the most influential cricketer of the last decade," Shastri told Cricbuzz.

"There are many unforgettable memories, some which are immensely personal to me. He played a brand of cricket associated with no other Indian and captain as well. As I wrote in my social media post (on X, formerly Twitter), he is truly a modern-day giant," the Mumbai-born cricketer said.

India has also remained No. 1 in Tests for three consecutive years from 2017 to 2019 with Kohli and Shatri at the helm. The men in blue also won the ODI series against South Africa 5-1, the first bilateral ODI series win in the country after four failed attempts previously. Shastri last coached the Indian team during the T20 World Cup in UAE in 2021 and also happened to be Kohli's last series as a white-ball skipper.

"Can't believe you are done. You are a modern-day GIANT and were a fantastic ambassador for Test match cricket in every way you played and captained. Thank you for the lasting memories you've given to everyone, and to me in particular. It's something I will cherish for life. Go well, champ. God bless," Shastri wrote in his post on X.