'Easiest format': Sanjay Manjrekar’s strong take on Virat Kohli’s Test retirement

Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has once again questioned Virat Kohli’s decision to retire from Test cricket, saying the star batter chose to walk away instead of fixing his flaws in the longest format. Manjrekar shared his views in a video posted on his official Instagram account, reacting to England’s Joe Root scoring his 41st Test century. Root’s latest milestone, according to Manjrekar, highlighted what Indian cricket lost when Kohli quit red-ball cricket.

Virat Kohli, along with Joe Root, Steve Smith and Kane Williamson, was part of the famous ‘Fab Four’ in Test cricket. However, Kohli is the only one among them to step away from the format. Root, Smith and Williamson continue to score heavily in Tests across conditions.

“As Joe Root attains new heights in Test cricket, my mind goes to Virat Kohli,” Manjrekar said on Instagram. “He’s walked away from Tests, and it’s unfortunate that in the five years that he struggled before retiring, he didn’t quite put his heart and soul into finding out why he was averaging 31 for five years in Tests.”

Manjrekar added that he would have understood Kohli’s decision if he had retired from all formats. What disappointed him, however, was Kohli continuing to play ODIs, which he called the 'easiest format' for a top-order batter.

He also pointed out Kohli’s fitness and work ethic, saying those qualities could have helped him fight his way back into Test form. Manjrekar felt Kohli could have played more domestic cricket or overseas first-class matches to regain confidence.

“Because he’s so supremely fit, you feel he could have continued the fight,” he said. “He could have played first-class cricket, played more in Australia, England, and India, and tried to make another comeback.”

Manjrekar concluded by saying that every time Root, Smith or Williamson scores big runs in Tests, it reminds him of Kohli with a sense of disappointment.

Virat Kohli's Test numbers from 2021-2025

Virat Kohli's Test numbers from debut (2011) till 2020