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BCCI vice president Rajeev Shukla addresses Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s farewell talk, asks fans to not worry.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have retired from Tests and T20Is. (Picture Credit: AFP)
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) vice president Rajeev Shukla urged fans not to worry too much about Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s farewell, considering they are both fit and playing well. He also backed ‘very fit’ Kohli and the ‘very good player’ Rohit amid fears that their careers could come to an end soon.
In an interview for the UPT20 league competition, Shukla was asked whether both legends of Indian cricket would get a farewell match, just like Sachin Tendulkar did at the Wankhede Stadium when he called off his career in 2013. In reply, he reminded that the duo was still playing ODIs and would not be asked to retire by the board, while the board would take a call on farewell match prospects when the time is right.
“They haven’t retired, haven’t they?” Shukla said in the interview. “Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are both playing One-Dayers. They haven’t taken retirement, so why are you talking and worrying about their farewell? Retirement from two formats, that’s the phases, but they are still playing ODIs. Don’t worry this much. BCCI policy is quite clear; we don’t ask anyone to retire, they have to make their decisions themselves. He has to take that call, and we respect that,” he added.
When the hosts urged him to take it as a fan request to arrange a farewell game for them, Shukla said, “We’ll cross the bridge when we come to it. You are already arranging their farewell! Virat Kohli is very fit, and Rohit Sharma plays very well. Why are you worried about their farewell?”
Kohli and Rohit retired from T20I cricket after winning the 2024 World Cup in the West Indies. They called off their Test careers within days of each other in May this year.
There has been no ODI cricket for India since IPL 2025, and the next series is scheduled for October in Australia. There are murmurs in the media that they could be asked to feature in the domestic competition, the Vijay Hazare Trophy, for their hopes of playing in the 2027 World Cup, but it remains to be seen if that materialises.
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