Manoj Tiwary, a former cricketer, feels that Virat Kohli’s sudden retirement from Test cricket might have been due to something more than his performance.
Kohli, after scoring a century in the first Test of the 2024-25 Australia tour, had a poor run and chose to play domestic cricket after 12 years, playing a Ranji Trophy match against Railways. Though his return drew a big crowd to Arun Jaitley Stadium, he scored only 6 runs off 15 balls. Then he turned his attention to Champions Trophy and IPL. In the middle of the IPL season, he announced his retirement from Test cricket which is the format he loved the most.
Could have played for another 3-4 years
Tiwary feels Kohli could have played red-ball cricket for another three to four years. He said on CricTracker, “It was surprising for all the cricket fans, he could have easily played for another three years minimum and four years. It was very surprising and shocking for all the cricket fans, including me. We all knew he’s so physically fit and he was preparing himself for the England series.”
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Virat Kohli’s Test Career
Kohli’s Test career lasted for 14 years and 123 matches. He scored 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85, with 30 centuries, including seven double hundreds.
Can’t reveal the reason behind it
Tiwary suspects the timing of Kohli’s decision but won’t reveal the reason behind it.
He said, “I don’t know what happened. What is the story behind the scenes? I think he was not feeling like he was wanted in Team India. Only he can say. I think he will not come out and ever say this thing in public because he is very happy with what God has given to him. He is becoming spiritual as well. When someone becomes spiritual, they just leave all these things aside and focus on the present. They don’t want to talk about the past. I don’t think he will come forward and ever say what has happened behind the scenes.”
Tiwary said he and other players are aware of some issues in Indian cricket, suggesting Kohli was unhappy with the environment and decided to retire from the format.
He said, “But as a cricket lover, things that are happening around Team India, the cricketers like us who know a little bit, we all know what’s happening behind the scenes. I think he did not like the atmosphere he was playing in.”
