Overview:
BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla said that players retire when they want, and the cricket body doesn't force anyone to announce retirement.
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma surprised everyone when they announced their retirement from Test cricket just before the tour of England. Everyone was expecting to see the two legends competing against the Ben Stokes team, but they chose to bid adieu. Although they were struggling to perform in Test cricket, the team still needed their experience to beat England.
There were reports that the two were forced to retire by the Indian cricket board. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) finally broke its silence on the matter.
BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla said that players retire when they want, and the cricket body doesn’t force anyone to announce retirement.
Rohit was the first to retire from the Test format. In 67 Tests, he scored 4301 runs at an average of 40.57.
On the other hand, Virat Kohli amassed 9230 runs in 123 Tests with 30 hundreds and 31 fifties.
It was speculated that Virat and Rohit’s decision was influenced by head coach Gautam Gambhir, chief selector Ajit Agarkar, and the BCCI.
“We are feeling the absence of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. It was their decision to retire and the BCCI doesn’t tell any player to retire. It was their call,” Shukla told ANI.
“They took retirement on their own. We will always consider them as legendary batters. It is good that both are available for ODIs,” he added.
England have won two Test matches while India secured a victory in one red-ball game. The fourth Test will start on July 23 in Manchester.