'If not in this series...': Virat Kohli urged to come out of retirement by 1983 WC winner

Virat Kohli requested to come out of retirement. (Photo: BCCI)

Days after India's close loss to England in the third Test at Lord's, former Indian cricketer Madan Lal made a sincere plea for Virat Kohli to come out of retirement. India lost the Lord's Test by a slim margin of 22 runs. Before the current series began, Kohli had declared his retirement from Test cricket.

Madan Lal urged the veteran to come back and impart his priceless knowledge and enthusiasm to the younger players, saying there is no harm in changing his decision.

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"Virat Kohli's passion for Indian cricket was unmatched. It's my wish that he should come back to Test cricket after retirement. There's nothing wrong with returning. If not in this series, he should make a comeback in the next,” Madan Lal told CricketPredicta.

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"From my point of view, he should reverse his retirement. Because he can easily play for 1-2 years. It's about you passing your experience to the youngsters. You just left it. It's not too late. Please come back," he added.

Meanwhile, former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar likened Virat Kohli to Shubman Gill, claiming that the former Indian captain would have changed the outcome of the chase with a hundred.

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"What Virat Kohli did was second nature to him. His cricket and batting used to get enhanced by that. Shubman Gill, I'm not sure whether this (aggression) comes naturally to him. If Virat Kohli had come out to bat, he would have looked into the face of those people and got a hundred. But if you looked at Shubman Gill's body language, the man who has almost batted like Bradman, was so tentative. The way he batted in those 9 balls seemed like he had gotten a pair. That is a clear message to me that aggression may not be his natural demeanour or approach," he said.

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Despite the setback at Lord’s, India displayed commendable grit on the final day, led by Ravindra Jadeja and the lower order. However, their fight fell short, resulting in a 22-run defeat. Now trailing 1-2, India will look to level the series when the fourth Test begins on July 23 at Old Trafford.