For some of the experts and fans, Virat Kohli's decision to step away from Tests came as a surprise, as he always rated the red-ball format higher than the two white-ball formats. However, for former Team India bowling coach Paras Mhambrey, the star batter's retirement from the Test was a correct and selfless one. Kohli announced retirement from the longest format of the game just days after Rohit Sharma did.
Mhambrey stated that both Kohli and Rohit might have given a lot of thought before coming to making this tough decision. Both the stalwarts had a dismal tour Down Under, failing to assert any sort of dominance on the Australian bowlers on relatively good batting surfaces. Kohli's Test average dipped below 50, while Rohit's came down from 46 to 40 by the end of the Australia tour.
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“Virat didn’t have five years of Test cricket left in him…Their (Kohli and Rohit) individual battles that they fought, they must have realized 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.
Paras Mhambrey feels playing only one format will allow Virat Kohli & Rohit Sharma to add more value to Indian Team
The former bowling coach further stated that playing only one format of the game will allow Kohli and Rohit to add more value to the Indian Team. Both the players were extremely hurt after losing the ODI World Cup Final to Australia in 2023. Having won nine games, India were favorites to clinch their third 50-over World Cup. However, Travis Head's scintillating hundred snatched away the dreams of Rohit & Co. & billions of Indian fans.
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“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.
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