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Former India World Cup winner Madan Lal has shared views on Virat Kohli’s Test retirement. The former all-rounder expressed his disappointment on Kohli’s Test retirement as the former believed that the latter should have played the traditional format of the game for more years and also could have led the side for couple of more years.
Virat Kohli retired from Test cricket after he had a poor tour in Australia, as he called his day on May 12 2025 right ahead of the England Test series. The former India captain stepped down from captaincy in January 2022 with Rohit Sharma taking over from him.
"I do feel a little disappointed"- Madan Lal upset about Virat Kohli's early Test retirement
While discussing on the YouTube channel KADAK, Madan Lal stated that Kohli while he was the captain of the Men in Blue side they were aggressive and played fearless brand of cricket, across formats especially in Test cricket and implemented winning mentality inside the team.
“I do feel a little disappointed about Virat, as there was still a lot of Test cricket left in him. Virat gave Indian cricket a new direction. He brought aggression and showed the team how to win. But I don't know what happened with Virat. I don't know who the selector was at the time, but I think they made a mistake.”
“He should have been allowed to continue as captain. That's my personal opinion. I believe there was some communication gap between them because, in my view, Virat could have continued as captain for another two or three years.”
Virat Kohli's Test career
Virat Kohli concluded his Test career as one of India's greatest red-ball cricketers, amassing 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85, which includes 30 centuries in 123 matches.
As captain, he led India in 68 Test matches winning 40 and took the team to the top of the ICC Test ranking. He had a record of winning in home Test series (won 11, drawn 1) with an impressive 77.41% home win percentage. Also led India to their first-ever Test series victory in Australia in 2018-19.
Madan Lal sheds light on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma
Madan Lal also shared his views on the future of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli for the ODI World Cup 2027 only if they maintain their fitness till the next major tournament.
“Yes, absolutely, they should continue. There are two things to look at: fitness levels and performance. If they can maintain both, then they should keep playing.”
“I can explain this with Virat. He is one of the smartest cricketers I have ever seen in my life. He reads the game, understands the situation, and thinks accordingly. If three wickets have already fallen, he knows it's his responsibility to bat in a way that takes the team to a score from where they can either fight or even win the match.”
“Earlier, people used to say that Virat didn't bat quickly. It was never about batting fast. He reads the situation, understands the game, and plays according to what the team needs.”
