Is it the right time to move on Virat Kohli in Test cricket? Having just finished the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 with 190 runs in 9 innings, the time seems appropriate for this chat. The former Indian captain has serviced the Indian cricket team for over a decade, but now might be the time to cut the modern great loose from the Test setup.
Why dropping Virat Kohli makes sense
It isn’t that Kohli’s had one bad series or year, but it’s been an issue for half a decade now. Had it been someone else putting on such an abysmal show, they might have cut loose by then. Think of how KL Rahul has been treated over the year, despite his average being somewhat similar to Kohli’s in the last five years.
Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra echoes what Irfan Pathan had said yesterday. He feels that there’s no use in playing Kohli, who’s 36 now. Instead, Team India should rope in a youngster. If he averages just 25, that’s fine, because that’s been Kohli’s output in 2024. If Team India fails, it’s better to do it with a youngster who can play for a decade more.
“Unfortunately, the numbers of the last five years are saying that whoever is talking is not about propaganda or agenda. You can see home or away, the numbers are saying that things aren’t looking good. Irfan (Pathan) said on Star Sports that if Virat Kohli hasn’t scored runs for five years, play a kid, as he too would score runs at an average of 25,” he said.
Virat Kohli’s Test record since 2019
| Innings | Runs | Average | 50s | 100s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80 | 2,636 | 35.1 | 11 | 5 |
BCCI to take the tough call?
Aakash did, however, mention that what he or anyone else thinks doesn’t matter as it’ll be the selectors who’ll have the final call. Given Team India is out of the World Test Championship (WTC) Final and neither Kohli nor Rohit Sharma is scoring runs, this is the time to start fresh and bring in new guys for the next series, which is the Test tour of England starting in June.
“What you want to do is your choice, but the selection is the selectors’ job. Since you are going to the next WTC cycle, you haven’t qualified for the final, and neither he nor Rohit has scored runs. The team is going through a transition, and things are looking quite shaky; the ball is in the selectors’ court. They have to decide now because if you think about what will happen till England, there won’t be any Test cricket in between,” Chopra added.
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