"It was about putting your own ego aside" - Former Australia captain's massive statement on Virat Kohli's Test retirement amid IPL 2025

Ex-Australian captain Aaron Finch hailed Virat Kohli for prioritising Test cricket to the extent of sacrificing his runs to make his team successful in the format. Finch cautioned that people debating the right-handed batter's record from 2020 must realize that India were playing on some massively turning wickets, which were far from easy to bat on.

Kohli, 36, officially announced his Test retirement on May 12 (Monday), two days after reports floated that he had informed the BCCI about quitting the format. Although the veteran scored heavily between 2016-2019, cracking 16 centuries. However, it came down to only three from 2023 to 2024, the last of which came in Perth.

Speaking on JioStar ahead of the IPL 2025 match between the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Kolkata Knight Riders on Saturday in Bengaluru, the Victorian stated, as quoted by India Today:

"What really stands out to me about Virat's leadership is that you can look at his numbers now and say they're not as good as they were five years ago. But he was playing on some wickets in India that were spinning hugely from day one. It was about putting your own ego aside to say, 'What's the best thing for my team right now to win a Test match against this opposition?'"

The Delhi-born cricketer has also retired as the most successful Test captain India has produced, leading the team to 40 wins in 68 Tests and a series victory in Australia. The star batter will continue to play ODIs and will look to extend his career until the 2027 World Cup.

"They could have rolled out some flat wickets" - Aaron Finch on Virat Kohli-led India

Aaron Finch. (Image Credits: Getty)

Finch went on to claim that India could have rolled out some docile batting wickets to let Kohli rack up runs, but credited the legend for putting Test victories above anything. He elaborated:

"They could have rolled out some flat wickets and said, 'I'm going to cash in on my own runs and make sure that my record stacks up with some of the all-time greats,' but he put his own ego aside and said, 'I want what's best for my team to win this match."

Meanwhile, fans at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru were keen to see Kohli in action, but rain washed away their hopes.