“THINGS WEREN’T RIGHT BETWEEN KOHLI AND THE BCCI”: JAVED MIANDAD, SHAHID AFRIDI OPEN ON VIRAT KOHLI’S TEST RETIREMENT

Former Pakistan players Javed Miandad and Shahid Afridi have reacted to Virat Kohli’s retirement from Test cricket. The two feel that the 36-year-old had few years of red-ball cricket left in him, but was forced to retire due to unfair treatment by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

Kohli, who has been the backbone of Team India’s batting order across formats, announced his retirement before the five-match Test series against England.

Although Kohli hasn’t been at his best since 2020 fueled, several greats of the game supported the batter and highlighted his passion, record and fitness.

“Kohli is a modern-day great, a match-winner and an inspirational captain,” Miandad told Telecom Asia Sport.

“He loved Test cricket a lot but the way he retired suggests that there is more to the story. Virat could have played until 2027. He had a rough patch but every batter goes through this circle,” he added.

Miandad hinted that all was not well between Virat Kohli and the Indian Cricket Board. “Maybe I’m wrong, but things were not right between Virat and the BCCI. The Indian Cricket Board didn’t even organise a farewell for him. It says a lot,” he concluded.

Shahid Afridi agreed with Miandad’s sentiments and criticized the lack of support from the BCCI officials.

“Virat was fiery and controversial but he did a lot for the Indian cricket. He gave everything for his team and won matches. Players like him should be treated differently,” he said.

Afridi recalled Kohli’s relationship with the BCCI and Sunil Gavaskar. “He used to be short-tempered. I remember Sunil Gavaskar once urged the BCCI to school him. But after his marriage, he became matured. He deserved more respect,” he added.

The post “Things weren’t right between Kohli and the BCCI”: Javed Miandad, Shahid Afridi open on Virat Kohli’s Test retirement appeared first on Crictoday.

2025-06-13T04:32:20Z