Virat Kohli: A great Test innings has come to an end

Virat Kohli's sudden retirement from Test cricket leaves a void; his fierce dedication and transformative leadership reshaped Indian cricket's legacy.

Pardon my confusion but Virat Kohli calling time on his Test career doesn’t add up. Why would a supremely fit, fiercely driven, staunch supporter of Tests suddenly decide to put away his whites? Why would a master of the ring suddenly throw in the towel?

(FILES) India's captain Virat Kohli gestures as he walks back after scoring his century (100 runs) and declaring the innings during the final day of the first Test between India and Sri Lanka at the Eden Gardens cricket stadium in Kolkata on November 20, 2017. Batting great Kohli announced his immediate retirement from Test cricket on May 12, 2025, just days before India name their squad for a tour to England. (Photo by Dibyangshu SARKAR / AFP) / ----IMAGE RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - STRICTLY NO COMMERCIAL USE----- / GETTYOUT (AFP)

It is difficult to process but, whatever the inside story, King Kohli has abdicated. Like professionals who experience high-work pressure or champion players who get a clear message from within, Virat has moved on. With his exit, a glorious chapter of Indian cricket is closed. A great innings has come to an end.

Of the 316 players who have played Tests since 1932, Kohli (number 268) is in a select group that shaped Indian cricket, etched their names in history and created a legacy that will live on. His place in the pantheon of Indian cricket’s all-time greats is assured. In the exclusive club consisting of Indian cricket’s royalty, Virat will remain King.

There are reasons to remember him with fondness, and admiration. It is a cliche that players give 100% on the field -- Virat always did more than that. He was feisty, irrepressible and always- on. With insane intensity and energy Virat would run at full speed between wickets, and sprint from long-on to long-on between overs.

If greatness is measured in numbers, Virat was a 100-Test player who made 30 Test hundreds and his achievements in Australia are better than most who have played the game. Virat may not have been the prettiest player to watch but not many had his sharp match awareness and gift of constructing an innings. His cover drive was part-art, part-science; the whipped bottom-handed flick to mid-wicket a statement of raw power and domination.

Virat’s real contribution is that he took Indian cricket forward, pushed the envelope and set an example for others to follow. His passion for Djokovic-like fitness (and complete rejection of junk food) is well documented. If young cricketers are hitting the gym and counting calories at meal time, it’s thanks to the player from Delhi’s Rajouri Garden who transformed himself into a lean athlete with ruthless discipline. If the team mantra is to play aggressively, only on front foot, the script writer is Virat.

Captain Virat’s lasting footprint on Indian cricket is that he created a new team culture and changed the team’s DNA. Skipper Virat was a game changer, a powerful leader who imposed Captain’s rule in cricket to single-handedly run the Indian team.

Like Tiger Pataudi , Virat changed the course of Indian cricket by introducing new ideas. Like Sourav Ganguly, Virat altered the grammar of Indian cricket and rewired the mindset of its players. With him, peak fitness and complete commitment to Team India were non-negotiable. Like Imran Khan, Virat was a powerful autocrat who could not be accused of being democratic. But both used their clout for common good and challenged the traditional mould.

Strategically, he assembled a pack of fast bowlers and embraced aggression as a guiding principle. Interestingly, this policy change -- the new brand of cricket -- was Virat’s vision, drafted in the dressing room in team meetings. Such was Virat’s stature, he decided the benchmark for yo-yo tests , or whether it should be there at all.

When the IPL started in 2008, the young Virat Kohli ( captain of the U-19 team ) was in the draft where franchise teams had an opportunity to pick players. As COO of Delhi I had the first pick, and in what must be a monumental blunder, we at Delhi Daredevils passed him over, choosing Pradeep Sangwan instead.

Virat then, and now, is entirely different. Cricket lovers will miss his inspirational presence, his deep love and respect for Indian cricket -- but bowlers will be happy.

Somewhere, a certain Haris Rauf is breathing a sigh of relief.