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What is the reality behind Virat Kohli's sudden Test retirement? Check details
Things are currently looking very much deteriorated all over India, with the cross-border tensions upsetting everyone to a great extent and on the other hand, the situation is also disrupted on the cricketing front. The cricketing fraternity was already saddened after Indian captain Rohit Sharma came up with a surprising announcement on the social media, revealing his retirement from Test cricket. Then the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was forced to suspend the Indian Premier League (IPL 2025) season for a week amidst the continued India-Pakistan border tensions. However, the situation for the cricket fans worsened when it was reportedly revealed that Virat Kohli has informed the BCCI that he wants to retire from Test cricket with immediate effect.
Virat Kohli retirement from Test cricket was hinted during the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25?
The latest news coming out is that Virat Kohli had reportedly informed his teammates through several indications during the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 hosted Down Under about his intentions to retire from the longest format of the game. Incidentally, the modern-day master scored a fabulous century in the opening Test match against Australia, but other than that, the right-hander witnessed a really poor form during the five-match Test series, notching up just 190 runs across nine innings. After an amazing victory in the Perth Test match, the visiting Indian team ended up suffering a poor 1-3 loss in the five-match Test series.
Virat Kohli has expressed his intention to retire from Test cricket in the form of an email to the BCCI ahead of the all-important five-match Test series in England starting with the opening India vs England Test match starting from 20 June, 2025. However, a key figure in Indian cricket and the BCCI reportedly are trying their best to convince the legendary batter to reconsider his decision. But, if Virat Kohli has decided that he wants to call it a day from Test cricket, which he once termed as the purest format of the game, then it is very much unlikely that he will be thinking otherwise at this moment.
“He has made up his mind and has informed the board that he is moving on from Test cricket. The BCCI has urged him to rethink as the crucial England tour is coming up. He is yet to revert on the request,” sources told this newspaper.
After Rohit Sharma announcing his sudden retirement from Test cricket, the Indian team management is now on a lookout for a new skipper in the longest format of the game. While considering speedster Jasprit Bumrah's workload management issues, Shubman Gill is currently the front-runner to be named as the brand new India captain in Test cricket while wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant might be announced as the vice-captain.
However, the biggest twist in the tale is that multiple sources have confirmed that Virat Kohli reportedly requested the BCCI to give him the Test captaincy for the much-discussed India's tour to England. A similar situation occured during the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 as well where Kohli wanted the leadership role to fix things. But on both the occasions, the Indian team management decided against the decision as they did not wanted to engage in a stop-gap arrangement and most importantly, they wanted a youngster to take up the captaincy duties in the longer format of the game.
"A new WTC cycle is starting. Future and continuity have to be kept in mind as far as the team is concerned. Even coach Gautam Gambhir would want a set of players he is likely to work with for an extended period. There can't be any stop-gap solutions for such an important series. The last two series haven't been ideal for the team and the England series is crucial," the report said.
Many of the former cricketers have also posted their reactions on the different social media platforms on Virat Kohli's shocking decision to retire from Test cricket. While talking about Virat Kohli stats in Test cricket so far, the 36-year-old has composed a wonderful tally of 9230 runs from 123 matches at an average of 46.85 that includes 31 half-centuries and 30 hundreds since making his debut in the longer format in 2011.
Virat Kohli please don’t retire.. The Indian team needs you more than ever. You have so much more in the tank. Test cricket will not be the same without you walking out to battle it out for Team India.. Please reconsider..
— ATR (@RayuduAmbati) May 10, 2025
