SHIMONA SHARMA
The North News
Chandigarh, May 12
Virat Kohli, one of modern cricket’s most celebrated figures, has announced his retirement from Test cricket, drawing the curtain on a 14-year career in the game’s most demanding format. The 36-year-old broke the news on Monday on his Instagram account, just weeks before India’s five-match Test series against England begins on 20 June at Headingley.
The decision, described by Kohli as “not easy but it feels right,” ends a chapter that saw him become India’s fourth-highest Test run-scorer, behind only Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sunil Gavaskar.
“It’s been 14 years since I first wore the baggy blue in Test cricket,” Kohli wrote. “Honestly, I never imagined the journey this format would take me on. It’s tested me, shaped me, and taught me lessons I’ll carry for life.”
He added: “There’s something deeply personal about playing in whites. The quiet grind, the long days, the small moments that no one sees but that stay with you forever. I’ve given it everything I had, and it’s given me back so much more than I could’ve hoped for.”
Kohli informed the BCCI of his retirement plans on Saturday, according to reports. A senior board official is said to have urged him to reconsider, but the former India captain stood firm. His Test journey began in 2011 with a debut against the West Indies in Jamaica, shortly after India’s triumphant ODI World Cup campaign. His final Test came earlier this year against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
In 123 Tests, Kohli amassed 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85, including 30 centuries and 31 fifties. His highest score—an unbeaten 254—came against South Africa in Pune in 2019.
Beyond the numbers, Kohli’s presence in the longest format was defined by fierce intensity, peerless fitness, and an unrelenting will to win. As captain, he instilled a bold, aggressive brand of Test cricket that returned India to the top of the world rankings and transformed the team’s overseas performance.
“I’m walking away with a heart full of gratitude for the game, for the people I shared the field with, and for every single person who made me feel seen along the way,” he said in his post. “I’ll always look back at my Test career with a smile.” While Kohli remains active in limited-overs formats, his departure from Tests marks the end of an era for Indian cricket—a format he often described as the “truest test” of a cricketer’s character.
