Bengaluru: Fans of Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s Virat Kohli holds a poster in his honour after he recently announced retirement from the test cricket, as the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 T20 cricket match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Kolkata Knight Riders is delayed due to rain, at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, in Bengaluru, Karnataka. (PTI Photo/Shailendra Bhojak)

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly has questioned Virat Kohli’s decision to retire from Test cricket. Ganguly said he was surprised by Kohli’s retirement from Test cricket. “Kohli’s retirement has surprised me,” Ganguly told reporters at an event in Kolkata.Virat scored 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85, with 30 centuries and 31 fifties, and finished as India’s fourth-highest run-getter in the format.Earlier this week, Virat Kohli had announced his retirement from the Test cricket. Rohit was the first to call time on his red-ball career, and few days later, Kohli followed suit, leaving a massive void in the team.“It’s their own decision. Can anyone leave the sport without it being their own wish? But it’s been a fantastic career, and the same goes for Rohit Sharma,” Ganguly said.

Virat’s retirement from red-ball cricket marked the continuation of the exodus trend from the Test format in the Indian setup. Before the Indian batting bigwigs, the illustrious frontline off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin called it a day on his international career midway through the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.With Rohit and Virat gone, there is a big void of leadership in India’s Test squad ahead of the five-match Test series in England, starting from June 20.Who’s that IPL player?Ganguly said it is up to the selectors to pick the next Test captain for India. “It’s a decision the selectors must weigh carefully,” said Ganguly.“There are a lot of pros and cons. They have to think long term. Whatever the selectors think and work out, they will decide. There’s also Bumrah’s injury — whatever they decide…,” Ganguly added.