New Delhi: Former India spinner and Delhi’s Ranji Trophy coach Sarandeep Singh has made some stunning revelations after Virat Kohli retired from Test cricket. Singh revealed Kohli was planning to play for India in their upcoming five-match Test series against England and wanted to prepare for the all-important tour by featuring in the two practice matches for the India A team in June.
Singh said he was shocked by Kohli’s decision to retire from the longest format and was not expecting it at all after the conversation he had with the senior India batter when he played for Delhi in the Ranji Trophy earlier this year. Kohli featured in Delhi’s match against Railways at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi in February this year.
Kohli didn’t have a memorable outing in the Ranji Trophy encounter as he was dismissed cheaply on 6 by Railways pacer Himanshu Sangwan, who sent the India star’s stumps cartwheeling with a brilliant delivery. However, as per Singh, Kohli had no plans to retire at the time and was eager to do well in the England Test series.
“Only he knows the reason (for his retirement). Everyone is shocked,” Sarandeep Singh said during an interaction on Star Sports.
“There was no sign of it. Neither did I hear from anyone else about this. Look at the way he is performing in the IPL. He is in good form. I asked him if he would play a couple of County Cricket matches before the England tour. He said, ‘No Paaji, I am looking to play India A matches. Two India A matches where I will prepare for the Test series.’ He had a settled plan. Suddenly, seeing him end his red-ball career is surprising. He doesn’t have any fitness issues, no form issues,” added the Delhi coach.
Kohli told his Delhi Ranji coach he’s well prepared for the England tour and aims to score 500+ runs and he’d try for 3–4 centuries, He never said anything about retiring
Whatever happened bts whoever caused this I wish those fker never find peace
pic.twitter.com/lFaqZ6guxK— 𝘿 (@Vk18xCr7) May 12, 2025
The match between Delhi and Railways turned out to be Kohli’s final outing in red-ball cricket. The Sydney Test against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 was his final appearance for India in the whites, where he managed 17 and 6 runs in the two innings, respectively. Kohli endured a rough patch in Australia, scoring only 190 runs in 5 Tests, including a solitary ton in the first Test in Perth.
While Singh acknowledged the fact that Kohli was struggling for consistency and was continuously being troubled by the Australian pacers Down Under, he said the senior India batter was eager to make a strong comeback in England. The Delhi coach said Kohli wanted to repeat his heroics from 2018 in England and score 3-4 centuries to lead from the front.
“If you look at the Australia tour, Virat is known for his big runs Down Under. He started with a century and didn’t get it. He was not satisfied with it,” said Singh.
“During the Ranji Trophy, he told me, ‘I want to score three or four hundreds in England. I have to take responsibility being the senior batter in the team’,” added the Delhi coach.
Sarandeep Singh’s comments raises questions
Delhi coach Sarandeep Singh’s comments have raised questions about whether Kohli wanted to continue playing Tests for India and was forced to retire from the longest format. Multiple reports in the last few days claimed that Kohli had informed the BCCI top brass and the selectors of his decision to retire from Tests a few days back and that they wanted the premier batter to reconsider it.
However, contrary to the reports of BCCI asking him to stay and Kohli wanting to quit, Singh’s comments present a different picture. Earlier, a report in Dainik Jagran had stated that BCCI is not trying to stop Kohli from retiring and won’t interfere in his decision, while adding that the senior batter has been told that the team management that his services might not be required in Tests going forward.
Kohli retired as India’s fourth-highest run-getter in Tests with 9230 runs in 123 matches at an average of 46.85, including 30 centuries and 31 fifties. He was only 770 runs short of the elusive 10,000-run mark in the longest format but decided to quit at 36, missing out on the stellar feat.
Delhi’s Ranji Trophy coach Sarandeep Singh has made some shocking revelations after Virat Kohli announced his retirement from Test cricket. Singh said Kohli told him that he was ready to play in England and was looking to score 4-5 centuries in the series. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
