Virat Kohli’s decision to step away from Test cricket on 12 May has shocked the cricketing world, more so because it came right before a crucial away series against England in June.
With Rohit Sharma also announcing his decision to retire from Tests on 8 May, India are now without their two most experienced batters for the upcoming series. However, according to a report from Cricbuzz, Kohli had actually decided to retire from red-ball cricket some time ago.
Reportedly, Kohli was scheduled to discuss his Test future in a meeting with BCCI Secretary Jay Shah, as well as BCCI Vice President and IPL Chairman Rajeev Shukla. The meeting did not take place due to the recent military tensions between India and Pakistan.
Kohli did talk to a few people before making up his mind, the report said, the most important among them being his mentor and former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri. He also had a conversation over call at least twice with India’s chief selector Ajit Agarkar.
The reason behind this decision is not known for sure, but the report said that, after a spell of poor form, Kohli wanted to remain in a challenging environment where he was given the reins of handling the Indian team’s transition.
However, with Test captaincy reportedly marked for Shubman Gill, that opportunity never arose for the former skipper, who last led India three years ago.
There were also some changes brought in by the BCCI as of late, including limiting the time that spouses could spend on tours with players. On top of that, Kohli had a strained relationship with head coach Gautam Gambhir, with whom he shared “not much bonding” – the report claimed.
All these may have influenced his decision to bring down the curtain on his Test career, and he leaves the longest format as the most successful captain and batter in India’s history.
123 Tests, 9,230 runs, and 40 captaincy wins – all this means that Kohli’s legacy as one of the all-time greats is secure.
