Virat Kohli should have continued playing Test cricket
The Indian team, wearing white uniforms, competes on their home field. The second Test series is against South Africa, and after the first failure in Kolkata, the team is again in a difficult position. In Guwahati, India trails by 288 runs after the first innings, with key batsmen being retired one by one. It is at this point that everyone starts talking about how Virat Kohli should have continued playing Test cricket.
A former player’s opinion
It’s not just the average fan who thinks so. The same idea was openly expressed by former Royal Challengers Bengaluru player, wicketkeeper-batsman Srivats Goswami. His words, spoken in the midst of a difficult match for India, touched a nerve with many. In his opinion, Kohli should have made the exact opposite choice: quit ODIs but stay in Test cricket.
“Ideally, Virat should have left ODI cricket and continued playing Test cricket until he was completely exhausted. Test cricket misses him. Not only as a player, but also for the energy he brought, the love and passion with which he played, instilling in the team the belief in victory under any conditions,” Goswami wrote on his X page.
Virat Kohli should have continued playing Test cricket: not just stats
The situation on the field seemed to confirm his rightness. India were bowled out for just 201 runs in the first innings, showing a real collapse. Only Yashasvi Jaiswal (58 runs) and Washington Sundar (48 runs) offered resistance. Their partnership with Kuldeep Yadav at the eighth wicket was one of the few rays of hope in a game that South Africa ultimately controlled comfortably. Marco Jansen, with six wickets (6/48), simply left the Indian batters no chance.
And against this backdrop, Kohli’s absence was felt particularly keenly. It’s not just about the stats, although they are impressive: 9,230 runs in 123 Test matches over a 14-year career. It’s about something less tangible, but extremely important. “The winning mentality and fire that was there under Virat Kohli seems to have been lost in this team,” Goswami added in another post.
Can an entire team be judged by one unsuccessful match? Cricket is an unpredictable game, and today’s challenges do not cancel out the achievements of the past. Perhaps the current lineup just needs time. But there’s no denying that Kohli was a player whose inner confidence and aggression on the field was infectious to everyone around him. He didn’t just play, he believed in victory under any circumstances and knew how to convey this belief to his teammates.
Kohli’s decision to retire from Test cricket earlier this year came as a shock to many. After so many years serving the national team in white, he undoubtedly had his reasons. The personal choice of a player, especially at this level, should always be respected.
But Goswami’s comments that Virat Kohli should have continued playing Test cricket raise a more serious question. Perhaps his opinion is a nostalgic look into the past. And perhaps a reminder that the real test of a player’s and a team’s character still happens here on the Test pitch, in a five-day match. And at times like Guwahati, the absence of a leader like Kohli is especially felt.
