“He had made up his mind” - Ajit Agarkar’s huge statement on Virat Kohli’s Test retirement ahead of ENG vs IND 2025 series

Team India's men's chief selector Ajit Agarkar has made a huge revelation about Virat Kohli's Test retirement as the national side prepares for the upcoming Test tour of England. Agarkar disclosed that Kohli had reached out to them in early April and was fixated about retiring from the format.

The 36-year-old officially announced his retirement from Test cricket on May 12 with a poignant post on Instagram, claiming that it was the right time to step away. The veteran quit the format, becoming the most successful Indian Test captain with 40 wins in 68 Tests. Additionally, he is India's fourth-highest run-getter in Tests with 9230 runs in 123 matches.

Speaking at a press conference in Mumbai on Saturday, May 24, Agarkar said, as quoted by Sports Tak:

"Virat reached us out early in April and said he had made up his mind to retire from Test cricket."

Kohli had a forgettable tour of Australia earlier this year, managing only 190 runs in nine innings at 23.75 despite starting the five-Test series with a century in Perth.

Shubman Gill likely to bat in Virat Kohli's place during England tour

With Rohit Sharma also retiring from the format, the BCCI announced Shubman Gill as his successor for the five-Test tour of England. Although Gill has opened the innings before, he is likely to bat at number four in England, filling in for Kohli. The 18-man Test squad includes three uncapped players in Abhimanyu Easwaran, Arshdeep Singh and B Sai Sudharsan.

The series also marks the return of Karun Nair following a seven-year hiatus from the Test squad. A shock omission in Mohammed Shami followed as Agarkar cited fitness issues but India still have a strong cartel of fast bowlers in Arshdeep, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Shardul Thakur, Akash Deep, and a seam-bowling all-rounder in Nitish Kumar Reddy.

The five-Test series begins on June 20 at Headingley in Leeds.