VIRAT Kohli boasts the best win-percentage of anyone who has captained India in at least ten Tests and his side sits comfortably atop the ICC’s rankings, but Sunil Gavaskar says questions will be asked of his leadership after two consecutive series defeats away from home.

Heading into 2018 Kohli had not tasted a series-defeat as Test captain but he was fully aware the team’s greatest challenges lay ahead of it, with tours of South Africa, England and Australia locked in for the year.

His Indian team has already lost two of them, going down 2-1 to South Africa and trailing England 3-1 with a Test to go despite the man himself sitting comfortably atop the run-scoring charts (544 at 68.00).

While praising the 29-year-old’s own efforts with the bat, Gavaskar said the side has failed to deliver the results expected of it.

“Everybody would be disappointed looking at the result because when Virat took over as captain, it seemed like the team would head into a new direction under him,” he told India Today.“The team looked hungry to win and seemed more hopeful of doing well under Kohli.

“Everyone thought that he will bring in a lot more energy into the team. So quite naturally, there will be questions asked about his captaincy.”

The former opener suggested the skipper had been let down by his senior teammates in the batting order.

“As a batsman Kohli has lived up to the expectations and even more. He has done everything possible as a batsman.

“If only the other batsmen could have played like him. If any other batsman could have scored over 400-500 runs then India wouldn’t have lost Test series in South Africa and in England.”

Meanwhile, Sourav Ganguly has put the blowtorch on coach Ravi Shastri and batting coach Sanjay Bangar.

Ganguly was a part of the panel that appointed Shastri as India coach in 2017 after the resignation of Anil Kumble, who had been given the job by the same panel a year earlier. He believes India’s batsmen have regressed under Shastri’s watch.

“Regarding Ravi Shastri, he has to be held accountable for the results along with Sanjay Bangar regarding why only one batsman is performing whereas others seem to have taken backward steps,” Ganguly told IndiaTV. “Unless these questions are answered an overseas series win in the three countries (South Africa, England and Australia) looks impossible for India.

“This batting line-up hasn’t been making runs for a long time now. If you look at India’s overseas performances from 2011 until now, they have lost every big series. When Virat Kohli is at the crease it seems that he is playing against totally different bowlers as compared to when the other batsmen are batting. I believe that the batting ability of the current players has gone down.”

However, Shane Watson does not expect India’s batsmen to have nearly as much trouble on Australian shores this summer.

“Trust me when Australia travel to England for the Ashes next year, it won’t be easy for them also,” the former all-rounder told the Press Trust of India. “England is the only place where the ball swings that much primarily due to conditions. You can’t just land in England once every three years and be successful.”

Watson pointed to the success India’s batsmen enjoyed in Australia in the 2014-15 Border-Gavaskar series as proof they had it in them to prosper this summer.

That campaign saw Kohli score four centuries in four matches (692 runs at 86.50), while Murali Vijay (482 at 60.25) and Ajinkya Rahane (399 at 57.00) both scored centuries and averaged well above 50. KL Rahul also chipped in with a century at the Sydney Cricket Ground in just the second Test of his career.

“In Australia, the Kookaburra will stop swinging after first 10 or maybe 15 overs unlike Dukes which can swing all day. I don’t think bounce would be that much of a problem.

“Indian batsmen of late have done well in Australia. Virat has scored loads of runs and I remember a fine century by Rahul at the SCG. Even Rahane scored a few runs.”