BCCI Told Rohit Sharma His Test Career Was Over, Virat Kohli's Call 'Personal' For Board: Report
NDTV
Rohit Sharma was reportedly already informed by the BCCI that his Test career was over.
As the Indian cricketing spectrum comes to terms with the possible exit of the stalwarts Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from Test cricket, a report has shared behind-the-scenes details of the conversations that took place between all the involved parties. Parallel to a BCCI meeting in Mumbai on May 7, involving the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selection committee chief Ajit Agarkar, Rohit's announcement of Test retirement was made public. A bigger bomb was dropped on Indian fans after reports of Kohli informing the board of a similar intention was made.
However, a report in Dainik Jagran has now claimed that Rohit was informed of the decision by the BCCI well in advance. As per the Hindi daily, the board had made it clear to Rohit that he is no longer a part of the team's Test plans.
It was later reported that Kohli has informed the BCCI of his decision to retire from the longest format, but the board has urged him to reconsider in view of the England tour. But, the paper also mentions that the BCCI doesn't want to intervene too much in the call, suggesting that the decision to retire is a personal one.
Rohit was already on the verge of retiring from the longest format after a poor outing in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, where he also dropped himself from the Sydney Test. While he is already gone, Kohli could soon follow his footsteps and quit the format he loves the most.
Among Rohit's potential captaincy successors, Shubman Gill's name sits on top of the wishlist. Gill has shown excellent form and leadership qualities for the Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League, and is reportedly the No. 1 captaincy choice for the Test format. He is already the team's vice-captain in T20Is and ODIs.
As for Virat, he led the Indian team in Tests for the first time Adelaide against Australia in 2014, replacing the legendary MS Dhoni. Under Kohli, India enjoyed many memorable victories in the longest format, showing potential to become a force away from home. Kohli also led India to two World Test Championship finals, though the team couldn't win any of them.
