‘People Didn’t Want Him There’: Ex-India Player On What Pushed Virat Kohli To Test Retirement
Virat Kohli’s sudden Test retirement earlier this year had shocked fans. India veteran Mohammad Kaif believes it stemmed from poor form and feeling unwanted in the team.
- Virat Kohli surprisingly retired from Test cricket earlier this year.
- Mohammad Kaif cited dip in form and feeling unwanted for retirement.
- Both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma now focus on ODIs; future uncertain.
Virat Kohli, India's greatest cricket star of the modern era, retired from Test cricket just before the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series began in England.
This came as quite the shock to fans and experts alike, as The King hadn't expressed any such desires until then, at least publicly. Having said that, many have speculated that his poor run in the format, especially the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, may have been the tipping point.
Kohli had already retired from T20Is after winning the ICC T20 World Cup in June 2024, and is only active in One-Day Internationals now.
Notably, former Indian cricketer, Mohammad Kaif, has weighed in on what drove the IPL 2025 winner to retirement in the longest format of the game. According to him, the decision was driven by two key factors - a dip in form, and a growing sense of not being wanted in the team.
Virat Kohli Test Retirement: What Kaif Said
In a recent video on his YouTube channel, former Indian batsman, Mohammad Kaif, said this about what triggered Virat Kohli's retirement from Test cricket (translated in English):
"Virat Kohli was struggling, there were two reasons for his retirement, one being that he wasn't able to score runs. Every bowler was targeting his off-stump weakness, he got a little exposed there. Second, he wanted to continue, go on the England tour, but some things within the team made him feel like many people didn’t want him there anymore,"
Shortly after Kohli's retirement, Rohit Sharma hung his boots in the red-ball format as well.
A very young team travelled to England for the five Test matches, with Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja, Rishabh Pant, and Mohammed Siraj as seniors, leveling the series 2-2.
Kohli and Rohit are now only active in ODIs, and have been called-up for the series against Australia later this month. However, speculation looms over their longevity, particularly regarding the 2027 ICC World Cup.
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