“He has nothing more left to achieve” - Yograj Singh’s brutal take on Virat Kohli’s Test retirement ahead of ENG vs IND 2025 series

Former India cricketer Yograj Singh believes that Virat Kohli retired from Test cricket because he felt there was nothing more left for him to conquer. The ace Indian batter ended his career from the longest format ahead of the England tour and the rest of the 2025-27 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle.

Kohli was reportedly persuaded to reconsider his decision, but the former skipper had made up his mind and went on to formally announce his retirement through a post on social media on May 12. His Test retirement comes mere days after Rohit Sharma also took the same call, choosing to part ways before the next WTC cycle.

Yograj Singh admitted Virat Kohli's absence will be a huge loss for the team, and used Yuvraj Singh as an example of someone who retired prematurely.

"Virat is a big player, so it will obviously be a loss. When many players were either removed, retired, or coerced into retirement in 2011, the team fell apart and has still not stood back up. I feel a lot of cricket is still left in Virat and Rohit," Yograj told ANI (via NDTV).

"I told Yuvi (Yuvraj Singh) that it was not the right move when he was retiring. One should walk away from the field when one can no longer walk. If you form a team full of youngsters, it will always fall apart. Maybe Virat feels that he has nothing more left to achieve," he added.

Virat Kohli did have a storied red-ball career, which included a near-perfect run at home, a record number of double centuries, and a historic series win in Australia. However, at the end of the day, his resume does not include series wins in South Africa, New Zealand and England.

He was also tipped by former head coach Rahul Dravid to complete his ICC trophy cabinet by securing the World Test Championship (WTC) mace, but that is another element that remained unfulfilled.

"I think Rohit Sharma needed just one person to motivate him daily" - Yograj Singh weighs in on the veteran's retirement decision

There was plenty of speculation regarding Rohit Sharma's future as batter and captain in the Indian Test team after the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. The veteran batter opted to go out on his own terms ahead of the England tour, ending his Test career after 67 appearances, scoring 4301 runs at an average of 40.58.

"I think Rohit Sharma needed just one person to motivate him daily, for example, to go for a run at 5 AM. Rohit (Sharma) and Virender Sehwag are two people who retired too early. The greatest players should play till 50 years of age. I am sad about their retirement as no one is left to motivate the youngsters now," Yograj added.

Ace batter Shubman Gill is touted to be the next Test captain while battling a shaky red-ball record. The selection committee is expected to name the squad for the five-match series soon.