Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma surprised everyone by suddenly announcing their retirement from Test cricket just before India’s tour of England in May last year. Since then, theories have surfaced extensively regarding the Test retirement of two of India’s biggest icons.
The game of blame and counter blame over the Test retirement of Ajit Agarkar and Gautam Gambhir or Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma
Many are blaming chief selector, Ajit Agarkar and head coach, Gautam Gambhir for his sudden exit from the Test format, but former India fast bowler Sudeep Tyagi has stepped in to clarify the situation and take the heat off him, as there were rumors that he would be dropped from the ODIs as well.
Tyagi clarified that Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli have not been forcibly removed from the Test team. He strongly rejected all discussions about plans by the coaches or selectors to drop the two legends, insisting that these stories are mere rumors and there is no truth to them.
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Sudeep Tyagi rubbishes all rumors of eviction
He said that it is normal to have differences of opinion between players, coaches and selectors in sports and it does not mean that anyone has bad intentions. Tyagi believes that such discussions often help teams take better collective decisions and that is what happened in this case too.
Sudeep Tyagi said in a speech Exclusive Interview with CricketAddictor“No, I don’t think so. These are all rumours. It’s all nonsense that they have removed them. It’s nothing like that. It’s possible that sometimes you don’t share your thoughts with anyone. It doesn’t mean that they think bad about you.”
Personal call taken by Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma
The former CSK bowler believes that the final decision was taken by Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma themselves. He stressed that if a player continues to perform well, no selector or coach has the power to drop him from the team and rubbished all the chatter.
Tyagi further explained, “When you have different opinions, you collectively get good results. I think that’s what happened. At that time, their form was not that good. Everyone knows it. They were struggling, but it is not like the coaches and selectors should remove Virat and Rohit or ask them to leave. This is nonsense. It is their individual and personal decision. I think they would have spoken to the selectors or Gauti Bhai.”
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Tyagi believes Kohli and Rohit left the Test too early
However, Tyagi feels that the retirement decision came earlier than expected, as he believes that Kohli could have easily played 40 to 50 more Test matches given his excellent fitness, fast running between the wickets and still high energy in the field.
He also believes that Rohit could have played 30 to 40 more Test matches. The former bowler also said that even if he does not play domestic cricket, no one can remove him from the team.
Doors for 2027 World Cup are open for Rohit and Kohli: Tyagi
Talking about the 2027 World Cup, Tyagi said that if Rohit and Kohli remain fit and keep scoring runs, then their place in the team cannot be questioned. He said that performance and fitness are the only real filters at the international level. As long as a player performs well, his place is secure.
He signed off by saying, “I want them both to play in the World Cup. But it’s in 2027. So, it’s all about fitness and performance for them now.”
