Virat Kohli was captain and Ravi Shastri was head coach during some of India’s greatest Test cricket years. The Shastri-Kohli team provided Indian cricket fans with some priceless memories, from winning a Test series in Australia for the first time to making it to the finals of the first World Test Championship (WTC).
On Monday, May 12, Virat Kohli startled the cricket community by declaring his retirement from the game’s longest format. Before he made his choice public, Shastri claimed to have spoken with the 36-year-old. The former cricket player for India claimed that Kohli understood he had given his country his all in the red-ball format and that he had no doubts about the call.
“I did speak to him about it (retirement), I think a week before that (his announcement), and his mind was very clear that he’d given us everything.”
Ravi Shastri
“There were no regrets. There were one or two questions I asked, and that’s a personal conversation which, 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.”
Ravi Shastri
Virat Kohli ended his successful Test career after playing 123 matches and accumulating 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85. Shastri emphasized Kohli’s level of involvement throughout games and how failing to regulate his workload could result in burnout.
“If he decided to do something, then he gave his 100%, which is not easy to match. Individually, as a bowler, as a batsman. A player does his job, (and) then you sit back. 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, and 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.”
Ravi Shastri
He just got people to watch the game: Ravi Shastri
Ravi Shastri talked on the Delhi batter’s global fame and his ambivalent relationship with cricket fans.
“He’s got accolades around the globe. He has a bigger following than any other cricketer in the last decade. Whether it’s Australia or whether it’s South Africa, he just got people to watch the game. There was a love-hate relationship.”
Ravi Shastri
“They would get angry because he had the ability to get under the skin of the viewer also. In the way he celebrated, you know, his intensity was such that it was like a rash. It spread very quickly, not just within the dressing room but within living rooms as well for people watching cricket. So he was an infectious personality.”
Ravi Shastri
Ravi Shastri stated that he believed the former India captain had two to three more years of Test cricket remaining in him, hence he was taken aback by Kohli’s announcement of his retirement.
“Virat surprised me because I thought he had at least two or three years of Test match cricket left in him. But then, when you’re mentally fried and overcooked, that’s what tells your body. You might be physically the fittest guy in the business. You might be fitter than half the guys in your team, but mentally you’re well done, as they say, then it sends a message to the body. You know, that’s it.”
Ravi Shastri
