Sanjay Manjrekar’s Strong Remarks on Virat Kohli’s Retirement Choices

Team India veteran Virat Kohli has already bid farewell to Test and T20 formats and is currently continuing only in One Day Internationals. He has found his old form again with impressive performances in ODIs against Australia and South Africa. Recently, Kohli also showcased excellent form in the domestic Vijay Hazare Trophy, scoring one century and one half-century. However, despite his strong performances, former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has made controversial comments regarding Kohli’s retirement from Test cricket.

Reacting after Joe Root’s century in the fifth Ashes Test, Manjrekar stated that every time Root, Williamson, or Smith scores a hundred, Kohli comes to mind because of the hard work he once put into Test cricket. He expressed disappointment that Kohli retired from Tests early and chose to continue in what he called an “easier format” like ODIs. Manjrekar further remarked that Kohli struggled for nearly five years before retirement, averaging just 31, and failed to fully understand or address the reasons behind his dip in form. He added that he would have preferred Kohli to retire from all formats rather than continue only in ODIs, stating that the format is relatively easy for top-order batters.