Exclusive | Sourav Ganguly's blunt take on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's absence in Tests says 'Nothing is withheld for anyone...'

India's batting duo Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli announced their Test retirement in May, before the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025.

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In Frame: Sourav Ganguly, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli

In Frame: Sourav Ganguly, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli

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Virat Kohli announced Test retirement on May 12.

Rohit Sharma announced Test retirement on May 7, 2025.

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly opened up on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's absence in Tests during the five-Test match series of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 in England. The batting duo announced their retirements in May before the England tour. After their retirements, there were talks about the future of the Indian Test team that who will fill the shoes of batting greats. 

However, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) appointed Shubman Gill as Rohit's successor to lead India in whites. After being appointed as captain, Gill, who used to bat at number three, changed his position to number four, where Virat used to bat in the longest format of the game. Ganguly reckons that nothing is withheld for anyone and India has so much talent in batting. Ganguly further explained it by giving examples of Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid. 

"Nothing is withheld for anyone. India has so much talent. Have you seen everyone's performance in batting? Outstanding. Indian cricket is like this. If Gavaskar goes, Tendulkar comes. Tendulkar comes, Dravid comes, Laxman comes, Sehwag comes. After Sehwag, Kohli came. If Kohli leaves cricket, then Yashasvi, Pant, and Shubman Gill. Indian cricket has so much talent that it will continue to grow" Ganguly told Sports Tak. 

Ganguly, who also served as BCCI president also lauded the Indian setup, including domestic cricket and the Indian Premier League (IPL).

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"Good setup, good system, good domestic structure. IPL is such a big platform. They play everywhere. Cricket is played at every level. Under-19, A-Team, Senior Team. Indian cricket is very strong" added Ganguly.

Rohit announced his Test retirement on May 7, and Virat hung up his boots from the longest format of the game on May 12. The duo's last Test outing came in Australia during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, where Kohli managed to score 190 runs in five Tests and Rohit, who played three Tests, scored 31 runs.  

In Rohit and Virat's absence, Shubman Gill-led side ended the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 as a 2-2 draw, where India won the second and fifth Test and England defeated India in the first and third Test. The fourth Test match between India and England ended in a draw. 

The above interview was conducted by Anirban Sinha Roy, a West Bengal-based multimedia journalist who primarily covers sports for India Today and Sports Tak.

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