"We All Feel The Absence Of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli": BCCI Top Official Clears Air On Star Duo's Retirements

The ongoing England vs India series is an acid Test for the young Indian team led by Shubman Gill. Ahead of the series, the side was hit by two high-profile retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Both seniors said good-bye to the test format. Earlier, they retired from the T20I format while both remain active in the ODI format. BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla, who is in England with the Indian cricket team, was asked about the cricket body's role in the duo's retirements.  

Speaking on the absence of legendary players Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from the squad, who announced their Test retirements before the series, Shukla said that while their presence is being missed, it was their personal decision, and the BCCI does not force anyone to retire from any format.

"I want to make it clear once and for all. We all feel the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. The decision of retirement was made by Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. It is the policy of BCCI that we never tell any player to retire. We will always consider them as great batsmen," BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla said.

"They have retired themselves. We will always miss them, they are both great batsmen and the good thing for us is that they are available for ODIs."

Shukla also said that young skipper Shubman Gill has proven himself as a captain despite questions around his place in the team before the tour, owing to his past poor performances in overseas matches.

"He has also proven himself with the bat. A century, then a double century and a century, what could be better than this?" added the BCCI top official.

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team England Cricket Team Virat Kohli Rohit Sharma England vs India, 2025 Cricket