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On May 12, 2025, Virat Kohli announced his retirement from Test cricket with immediate effect. Kohli left his dream of completing 10,000 Test runs unfulfilled. Many current and former cricketers felt that Kohli had a few more years of Test cricket left in him but former India bowling coach Paras Mhambrey has hailed his decision to call time before the England tour. Not just Kohli, Mhambrey feels that captain Rohit Sharma also realised it is time they step away from the longest format.
"Virat didn't have five years of test cricket left in him. You knew that, right? Their (Kohli and Rohit) individual battles that they fought, they must have realised that it was time," Mhambrey told Hindustan Times.
“They always say how valuable they could be in their contribution. And sometimes, it’s the motivation bit. Maybe they were not as motivated to play that format. They’ll not be able to give their best to that format. And that’s the way they approach. So very selfless approach, both of them," he added.
Mhambrey was a part of the coaching staff headed by Rahul Dravid. During his tenure, Rohit-led India ended their ICC trophy drought and won the ICC T20 World Cup 2024. With Rohit and Kohli retired from Tests and T20Is, Mhambrey feels that the senior duo will be focussed and useful in the ODI format.
“Sometimes you are not in the frame of mind to go through the grind. If I’m not there 100%, I would rather just be honest and say that, I’m good in one format. Let me focus on the other format, which I can be more useful for the team," he said.
When will Kohli, Rohit play next ODI?
India's next ODI series is on Bangladesh soil in August. After that, India will head to Australia for a real test in the format. It will be interesting to see how Rohit and Kohli perform in the ODIs as there is a long break between the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 and the next ODI series.
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