Rajkumar Sharma spills the beans on Virat Kohli's retirement plans

Virat Kohli's childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma has revealed the retirement plans of the veteran cricketer. Rajkumar made it clear that Kohli has at least four years of international cricket left in him.

Virat Kohli is currently playing in the ongoing Champions Trophy where he is a key part of India's squad. He will be playing the 300th ODI match of his career when he takes the field against New Zealand at Dubai.

Also read: "Want to ask Virat Kohli, what would your wife and kids do when they watch?"- Billy Bowden on Ugly Incident

Rajkumar Sharma speaks on Virat Kohli's retirement plans

While speaking to Cricblogger, Rajkumar Sharma was asked about Virat Kohli's retirement plans. He made it clear that Kohli will continue to play for at least four years in international cricket and can even continue for more if he wants.

Rajkumar also indicated that Kohli can keep on playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) even after retiring from international cricket if he feels that he is good enough to play.

"Virat (Kohli) will play at least four years of international cricket if not more and could play many more years in IPL if he wants to," Rajkumar said.

Kohli is one of the fittest cricketers going around which increases his chances of playing in international cricket much more. Even at 36, he is faster than most of his younger teammates on the field and can be seen in hotspot fielding positions most of the times.

Although his Test form has dipped, he still remains a high-impact player in ODI cricket. Kohli will be looking to prolong his career by continuing his prolific ODI form and regaining his form in red-ball cricket.

"You feel proud of such a child" - Rajkumar Sharma on Virat Kohli

During the same conversation, Rajkumar Sharma also revealed that Virat Kohli provided him the tickets for the marquee clash between India and Pakistan recently. He also claimed that he stayed in the same hotel where the Indian team was staying.

"He (Kohli) is the one who gave me the tickets. I am staying in his hotel. He knows that I am sitting there. You feel proud of such a child. If you are his coach, then there is nothing more proud than this," Rajkumar added.

With Rajkumar Sharma in attendance, Virat Kohli struck his 51st ODI century and took India to a comfortable win over Pakistan. It was a masterclass from the veteran batter as he put on another show during a run-chase.

It was a typical Kohli-style knock where he didn't take much risks and relied on playing with a straight bat. He scored an unbeaten 100 off 111 balls which included just 7 fours.

IND vs NZ to decide semi-final fixtures

India will play against New Zealand in the final group-stage match of the Champions Trophy. The winner of this match will decide the standings in Group A, and therefore the semi-final fixtures as well.

The winner of this match will play Australia in the semi-final while the loser will play the Group B toppers South Africa. India will continue to play their semi-final match in Dubai irrespective of the result while the other semi-final will be played in Lahore.