Shastri reveals conversation with Kohli before retirement decision saying that the latter was at peace with his decision.
Shastri reveals that Virat Kohli retired from Tests without regret.
He disclosed that he had a private discussion with Virat Kohli before he retired from Test cricket, which persuaded Shastri that the moment was perfect to make the choice. Shastri, who coached India during most of Kohli’s captaincy, claimed that Kohli has no regrets. Shastri thinks Kohli can still contribute significantly in both franchise cricket and ODIs.
“I did speak to him about it [his announcement], I think a week before that and his mind was very clear that he’d given us everything,” Shastri said on The ICC Review. “There were no regrets. There were one or two questions I asked, and that’s a personal conversation which, you know, he mentioned very clearly, there were no doubts in his mind, which made me think, ‘Yes, the time is right’. The mind has told his body that it’s time to go.
“He doesn’t have regrets. Ideally, everyone might want [him] to carry on. But then, he looks at the bigger picture. He feels he can contribute massive in the one-day game. There’s a lot of franchise cricket left for him in his life. The reason I think he will not have regrets is because he gave his everything.”
Over the course of his 14-year career, Kohli amassed 30 hundreds in 123 Test matches and became India’s most successful skipper in the format. Test cricket has to give way because it was difficult to balance everything at a high level across forms, according to Shastri.
“Individually, as a bowler, as a batsman, a player does his job, [and] then you sit back, ” Shastri said. “But [with Kohli] when the team goes out, it’s as if he has to take all the wickets, he has to take all the catches, he has to make all the decisions on the field.
“That much involvement, I would think there’s going to be a burnout somewhere if he doesn’t take a rest, if he doesn’t compartmentalise how much he wants to play across formats, there is bound to be a burnout. Well, it’s happened now and he’s pulled out of Test cricket. Unfortunate, because I still think he could have played two [more] years, but he’s the boss. If his mind tells him that is enough, it’s enough.”