Former Indian skipper Virat Kohli retired from Test cricket on May 12. His sudden retirement call took the internet by storm as Indian fans and former Indian cricketers reacted strongly.
Everyone has been surprised that Kohli has called time just before India's upcoming Test series against England. Kohli, who prioritized Test cricket among all the formats, finished just 770 runs short of 10,000 runs in his Test career.
The BCCI tried their best to convince Virat Kohli to reconsider his decision ahead of the England Test series, but Kohli had made up his mind and took to his official Instagram account to make his decision public.
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Need Couple of Series To Find Out - Cheteshwar Pujara On Virat Kohli's Replacement
Meanwhile, Kohli's retirement call has left a gaping hole in the Indian batting lineup at number four in Test cricket. Since Sachin Tendulkar's retirement in 2013, Kohli has batted at number four in 99 out of the 115 Test matches India has played.
Several names are under consideration for the management. KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Devdutt Padikkal, Karun Nair, and Shreyas Iyer are some of the options the BCCI can consider. However, veteran Indian batter Cheteshwar Pujara, who has himself batted at four in seven Tests between 2015 and 2023, said that India might need a couple of series to come to a decision.
"We will need a couple of series to figure out who is well suited to bat at No. 4, because it's an important position. You need your best batter to bat at No. 4. And at this time, I think it's still a spot where the team management will have to figure out who is the most suited player at No. 4," Pujara told ESPNcricinfo.
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Early Days To Make A Call - Cheteshwar Pujara
He further said that the players who are the options have not played too many Test matches and have not batted often at number four. He added, saying that the decision might take some time.
"There are a lot of players who are making their way into the playing XI, no one has a secured spot at this stage. It's a process which will take some time. It's still early days to make a call, but it will be important to see who performs well in England because someone who can perform well in England can have that No. 4 spot," Pujara said.
India's Test series against England starts on June 20 with the first Test in Manchester. The series also kicks off India's WTC 2025-27 campaign.
Also Read: "I'm Not Surprised He Called It a Day" – Sunil Gavaskar on Virat Kohli's Retirement
