During India’s recent Test series against England, BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla addressed the rumors around the unexpected Test retirements of two of the country’s modern-day greats, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Shukla said that both hitters’ decisions to leave red-ball cricket were completely personal following Tuesday’s match between the Indian men’s and women’s teams and King Charles III at St. James’s Palace in London.
Rohit and Virat declared their Test retirements less than a month before the five-match series against England. Many criticized the Test setup following India’s poor 2024–25 season, which saw them lose to New Zealand 3-0 at home and then lose the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Shukla, however, rejected such assertions.
“They have retired themselves. We will always miss them, they are both great batsmen, and the good thing for us is that they are available for ODIs.”
Rajeev Shukla
Rajeev Shukla also clarified that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are still in the loop to play in ODIs despite the withdrawal into Tests and strive to appear in subsequent events such as the 2027 World Cup. In the meantime, the leadership responsibility in the red-ball cricket has been given to young captain Shubman Gill. India made history becoming the first side win a test match at Edgbaston under his leadership, which prompted rumours of possible change of ODI captaincy as well. Nonetheless, Shukla did not make any comments on the matter of leadership.
“It was a very historic occasion meeting King Charles” – Rajeev Shukla
Rajeev Shukla, who was also at the palace when India’s Test players visited King Charles III, called the encounter historic. In his interactions with the cricket players, the King inquired about previous games and even the cancer battle of pacer Akash Deep’s sister.
“It was a very historic occasion that both our men’s and women’s teams were invited today by King Charles and met them very well in the Palace. Players are very happy because he asked all personal details of each player. He asked Saikia ji (BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia) and me about whether Arun Jaitley is my friend, what happened to him, and when I told him that he had died, he asked me to pay condolences to his family. He also asked about Akash Deep’s sister’s illness. He had found out so many details. He sounded like a gentleman, and it did not seem we were talking to the King of England. There is a lot of humility in him and team is very happy to meet him.”
Rajeev Shukla
