Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will still continue to be key figures in Indian cricket despite retiring from T20I and Test cricket. Both the senior players announced their Test retirements last week.
Rohit announced his Test retirement on May 7, with Kohli announcing his on May 12. Their retirement calls come just before India's Test series against England next month. The five-match series starts from June 10.
Rohit was under pressure to continue his Test career after his poor results with the bat in the Australia series. He scored just 31 runs in the series, besides losing the series to the Aussies. Rohit also lost a home Test series against New Zealand in December last year.
Also Read: Rohit Sharma - A Career in Numbers After Test Retirement
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Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma Still Key To Indian Cricket
There are reports that the management wanted a different Test captain ahead of the marquee series against England. Shubman Gill leads the race to become the next Test captain. Meanwhile, former Indian cricketers are backing Jasprit Bumrah to become the next Test captain.
Amid BCCI's waiting game, the BCCI Secretary Devajit Sakia confirmed that Kohli and Rohit will continue to remain in the Grade A+ category despite retiring from Test and T20I cricket. Kohli and Rohit were put in the Grade A category along with right-arm seamer Jasprit Bumrah and left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja as the BCCI announced the updated central contract list in April 2025.
"Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma's grade A contract will continue despite their retirement from the T20Is and Tests. They are still part of the Indian cricket team, and they will get all the facilities of Grade A ," Devajit Saikia told ANI.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are among the top run-getters in T20I cricket. Rohit ended his career with 4231 runs in 159 T20Is with five hundreds and 32 fifties. He is currently the top run-getter in T20I cricket. Virat scored 4,188 runs at an average of 48.69 and a strike rate of 137.04. He scored a century and 38 fifties and a best score of 122*. He ends the format as the second-highest run-getter of all time.
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Kohli Retires As India's 4th-Highest Run-Getter In Test Cricket
Talking about Kohli's Test career, he scored 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85, with 30 centuries and 31 fifties in 123 Test matches. He is the fourth-highest run-getter in the format for India after Sachin Tendulkar (15,921 runs), Rahul Dravid (13,265 runs), and Sunil Gavaskar (10,122 runs). On the other hand, Rohit scored 4301 runs at an average of 40.57, with 12 centuries and 18 fifties. He also led India in 24 Test matches, winning 12.
Both will be seen playing in IPL 2025, with the league resuming on May 17.
Also Read: " Why Did You Retire?" - Fan's Remark Stuns Virat Kohli Post Test Retirement
