Virat Kohli reverses Test retirement, available for England tour

Amidst the growing buzz over Virat Kohli’s Test retirement, a big update on his availability for the upcoming England tour would certainly make the Indian cricket fans’ day.

A News24 reporter revealed that Kohli will be flying to England with the Indian cricket team for the upcoming Test series. After days of uncertainty around his international future, this update has brought relief and joy to millions of fans.

Virat Kohli set to travel with Team India for England Test tour

Kohli is expected to play a key role as India is set to begin a new ICC World Test Championship cycle with the upcoming five-match Test series in England. It seems that BCCI finally succeeded in convincing Kohli to continue representing India in whites.

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Read Also: Virat Kohli is NOT going to retire from Test cricket: Brian Lara shares good news

One Last Time ❤️

Champ Will Be On Flight To England With Team India.

Virat Kohli Not Finished ✅ pic.twitter.com/J6GP2XB2Gl

— Vaibhav Bhola 🇮🇳 (@VibhuBhola) May 11, 2025

With Rohit Sharma stepping away from Test cricket, Kohli's presence is seen as vital to guide the new generation in England as the selectors and BCCI are set to revamp the Test team.

Virat Kohli informs Indian selectors about Test retirement

Meanwhile, Kohli reportedly told the selectors two weeks ago that he wants to leave Test cricket. The Indian selectors have been trying to convince him to play the upcoming Test series in England. A final decision is expected around the time of the team selection meeting next week.

TOI quoted a source as saying, “Kohli had informed the selectors two weeks ago about his desire to quit Tests. They were trying to persuade him to play in the Test series against England. However, he is still firm on his stance. The final call will come close to the selection meeting next week.”

Read Also: Mohammed Shami's England tour selection unlikely; BCCI unhappy with Mohammed Siraj

With BCCI and several cricket fraternity members urging Virat Kohli to reconsider his Test retirement decision, an old interview of a young batter is going viral, where he confidently spoke of crossing the 10,000-run mark in the traditional format of the game.

Virat Kohli's old interview goes viral amid his Test retitrement buzz

Virat Kohli said in Aaj Tak’s ‘Seedhi Baat’ in a 2013 interview, “I don’t keep track of records at all. When I score a century in a match, I find out afterwards that it was the quickest to 10 centuries or something like that. So, I only get to know about it after the match. Before the match, my focus is not on things like, ‘I have 5 innings left, and if I score 3 more centuries, I’ll set a record.’ I don’t think that way. My aim is to score 10,000 runs in Test cricket, and that’s something I really want to achieve.”

Over the years, Kohli has carved his name among the finest in red-ball cricket. Since making his debut in 2011, Kohli has played 123 Tests, scoring 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85 in Test cricket. He remains one of India's most prolific Test cricketers.

The dashing right-handed batter is currently fourth on the all-time Indian run-scorers list in Test cricket, trailing behind legends Sachin Tendulkar (15,921), Rahul Dravid (13,288), and Sunil Gavaskar (10,122). Now, many hope Kohli will keep alive the possibility of joining the elite club of batters with 10,000 runs in both Tests and ODIs. Notably, Kohli already retired from T20I cricket.