No Better Time Than Now: Anjum Chopra Reacts as Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma Retire from Test Cricket Ahead of England Tour- Exclusive

Add as a preferred source on Google

Two of India's modern-day batting greats, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, have officially drawn curtains on their red-ball careers, marking the end of an era in Indian Test cricket.

The dual announcements come just weeks before India embark on a crucial Test tour of England, starting June 20. Rohit called it a day on May 7, while Virat did on 12th May, Monday.

Former India Women's team captain Anjum Chopra believes the timing of the announcements makes complete sense in which these decisions were made.

"When will they announce, if not now?" Chopra said in an exclusive chat with MyKhel. "When they finished the last BGT (Border-Gavaskar Trophy) series, they went on to play the Champions Trophy, then the IPL - and at least now there is some gap. Announcing retirement in the middle of the IPL wouldn't have made any sense because the IPL is still ongoing. There has been no time and the guys have been playing cricket throughout."

The 47-year-old, a respected voice in Indian cricket circles, hinted that both players might have already internally communicated their plans well in advance. "That's okay, I mean, that's fine. Possibly, he'd already communicated or he'd already thought about it, which obviously, it's between the selectors and Virat-Rohit," she added. "At the end of the day, it's okay - at least because they know that he will not be available, right, rather than calling it at any other time."

Reports were surfacing for the last few days that Kohli has informed the BCCI about his retirement, while Rohit's decision came in as a surprise, as he confirmed during the BGT series last December that he has lot to play as far as Test cricket is concerned.

Kohli Calls Time After 123 Tests

Virat Kohli, the former Test captain, ended a remarkable 14-year journey that began in 2011 against the West Indies.

"It's been 14 years since I first wore the baggy blue in Test cricket. Honestly, I never imagined the journey this format would take me on," Kohli wrote in an emotional post on social media. "As I step away from this format, it's not easy - but it feels right. I've given it everything I had, and it's given me back so much more than I could've hoped for."

Kohli retires with 9,230 runs from 123 Tests, including 30 centuries and 31 fifties. He also captained India in 68 Tests, winning 40 of them - the most by any Indian Test skipper and fourth-most overall.

Captain Rohit Bids Farewell

Kohli's announcement followed Rohit Sharma's decision to step away from Test cricket five days earlier. The 38-year-old made his retirement public on his Instagram story.

"Hello everyone, I would like to share that I am retiring from Test cricket," Rohit wrote. "It's been an absolute honour to represent my country in whites. Thank you for all the love and support over the years. I will continue to represent India in the ODI format."

Rohit retires with 4,301 runs from 67 Tests, including 12 centuries. After making his debut in 2013, he became a mainstay in India's red-ball setup by 2019 and was appointed captain in 2022, leading the team to the 2023 World Test Championship final.

However, his form dipped during the recent five-match Test series against Australia, where he managed just 31 runs in three appearances and opted out of the final Test, making way for Jasprit Bumrah to lead.

The Road Ahead

With both Rohit and Kohli stepping away just weeks before a challenging England series, the Indian Test side face a transitional phase. The BCCI, as confirmed, will soon announce the squad for the tour with a fresh leadership structure to be in place.

India's current bench strength includes promising talents like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, and Sarfaraz Khan, who will be expected to shoulder more responsibility moving forward.

As Chopra succinctly put it, this might have been the only logical window for two legends to exit the format they graced for over a decade. "At least now, the selectors and the team know where things stand," she said, wrapping up her thoughts. It's the end of an era, but also the start of something new.