After Rohit Sharma now Virat Kohli also announced his retirement from Test Cricket. Kohli retires from Tests having scored 9230 runs from his 123 Tests, with 30 Test centuries and 31 fifties and many other memorable innings across a superb career. Kohli also bows out as India’s most successful Test captain and a passionate flagbearer for the longest format during an era of unprecedented change, as cricket adapted to three formats and a booming franchise ecosystem.
In an Instagram post on Monday (May 12), Kohli wrote, “It’s been 14 years since I first wore the baggy blue in Test cricket. Honestly, I never imagined the journey this format would take me on. It’s tested me, shaped me, and taught me lessons I’ll carry for life. There’s something deeply personal about playing in whites. The quiet grind, the long days, the small moments that no one sees but that stay with you forever. As I step away from this format, it’s not easy – but it feels right. I’ve given it everything I had, and it’s given me back so much more than I could’ve hoped for. I’m walking away with a heart full of gratitude – for the game, for the people I shared the field with, and for every single person who made me feel seen along the way. I’ll always look back at my Test career with a smile. #269, signing off.”
The decision comes after Rohit Sharma made a surprising announcement to call time on his career in the longest format of the game last week. Kohli’s decision to step away from Test cricket comes close on the heels of the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Ravichandran Ashwin, signalling a full-scale transition that Indian cricket hasn’t witnessed since the exits of Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman in 2012, and later Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag.
Having made his debut against the West Indies in 2011, Kohli cemented his place in the Test setup later in that year during the tour of Australia. While other batters struggled as India failed to pick up the pace, Kohli improved each game and signed off with a brilliant 116, his first-ever Test hundred in Adelaide. Kohli subsequently captained India in the red-ball format, securing 40 wins from his 68 Tests, making him the most successful Indian Menโs captain in Tests, in terms of wins.
He hangs up his spikes as the fourth-most successful Test captain overall, behind Graeme Smith (53 wins), Ricky Ponting (48 wins), and Steve Waugh (41 wins). His 30 Test centuries make him the fourth-most successful India batter, behind Sachin Tendulkar (51 hundreds), Rahul Dravid (36), and Sunil Gavaskar (34). Kohli also made seven Test double hundreds, the most ever by an Indian. Kohli also has the most Test hundreds by an Indian captain, with Gavaskar (11 centuries) way behind his 20 tons.
Kohli’s final appearance in India’s whites came at the SCG in January 2025, a country and a venue that’s witnessed some of his greatest triumphs as a player and captain. He won’t be part of India’s upcoming tour of England in a month’s time but his legacy as a great batter and one of the finest ambassadors of Test cricket will live on, hopefully inspiring future generations to embrace the format with the same pride and passion.
๐ง๐ต๐ฎ๐ป๐ธ ๐๐ผ๐, ๐ฉ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ต๐น๐ถ! ๐
An era ends in Test cricket but the legacy will continue FOREVER! ๐ซก๐ซก@imVkohli, the former Team India Captain retires from Test cricket.
His contributions to #TeamIndia will forever be cherished! ๐ ๐ pic.twitter.com/MSe5KUtjep
— BCCI (@BCCI) May 12, 2025
Earlier Rohit Sharma has retired from Test cricket with immediate effect, he announced on social media. He confirmed that he will continue playing ODIs. The decision brings an end to an 11-year career in the longest format, during which Rohit played 67 Tests, captaining 24 of them since taking over the reins of the team from Virat Kohli in 2022. He finishes with an aggregate of 4301 runs, including 12 centuries.
“Hello everyone, I would just like to share that I am retiring from Test cricket. It’s been an absolute honour to represent my country in whites. Thank you for all the love and support over the years. I will continue to represent India in the ODI format,” said Rohit in his statement.
Rohit’s retirement comes close to India’s upcoming tour of England, where they are scheduled to play five Tests. The selection of the squad is set to happen soon and will now have a new captain. In his most recent assignment as a Test captain in Australia, Rohit had at one point sat out considering his own poor form. India lost the series 3-1, with the Boxing Day Test at MCG late last year being Rohit’s last. He was originally pencilled in to make his Test debut in the 2010 Nagpur Test against South Africa before suffering a freak injury moments before the toss. It took him a further three years before he was picked to play the Kolkata Test of 2013 against West Indies, which he marked with a century. Another century followed in the next Test in Mumbai.
Thank you, Captain ๐ซก๐ซก
End of an era in whites!@ImRo45 bids adieu to Test cricket. He will continue to lead India in ODIs.
We are proud of you, Hitman ๐ซก๐ซก pic.twitter.com/azlpZFWdhn
— BCCI (@BCCI) May 7, 2025
But all that early promise appeared to be coming to nothing as Rohit went through five middling years in the format, with the only hundred in this period coming in the Nagpur Test of 2017 against Sri Lanka. His red-ball career received a fillip in 2019 when he was promoted up to open the batting against the visiting South African team in 2019, a three-match series in which Rohit hit two hundreds and his only double hundred in the format a 212 in Ranchi.
Further success followed against England in 2021, when he scored a masterful 161 on a raging turner in Chennai and another match-winning 127 in India’s win at The Oval. He scored two centuries against the same opponent in 2024 once more as he led an inexperienced side to a come-from-behind 4-1 series win. But having averaged 45.46 at the start of the 2024-25 season, he endured a dip in returns, managing a solitary 50+ score in 15 trips to the crease as his average dropped by four points. His captaincy record too took a big hit through the season as India were swept 0-3 by New Zealand, the first time India lost a home series in 12 years. In all, under his leadership, India had a 12-9 win-loss record.
Durgesh Tiwary’s View: Two big shocking news in a week and it’s very hard to digest as an Indian cricket fan that both legends Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli has announced their retirement from Test Cricket just before England Series. I agree that both had to retire one day but never ever in wildest dream thought that both will retire on poor note and losing consecutive series. They could had played England and home series like Sachin Tendulkar before announcing their retirement. Test Cricket will be not same without them.
RO-KO Forever! โค๏ธ pic.twitter.com/SzmY4hRs2Y
— Punjab Kings (@PunjabKingsIPL) May 12, 2025
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