Andre Russell hits back at Virat Kohli's 'IPL win five levels below Test cricket' remark

Andre Russell hits back at Virat Kohli’s Test cricket remark

After Virat Kohli’s bold remarks following his IPL triumph—where he ranked the league title significantly below the value of Test cricket—Andre Russell has weighed in on the ongoing debate surrounding red-ball cricket.

Russell, a global T20 star known more for his exploits in franchise leagues than international appearances, has played just one Test match for the West Indies. Despite his limited involvement in the longest format, he remains unapologetic about his career choices and has no regrets about prioritizing shorter formats.

With RCB, Kohli, who recently retired from Test cricket, finally lifted the IPL trophy after an 18-year wait. However, following the momentous victory, he spoke with Matthew Hayden in which the Indian maestro once again extolled the virtues of the red-ball format while downplaying his IPL success in favor of playing Test cricket.

"This moment is right up there with the best moments I’ve had in my career. But it still marks five levels under Test cricket. That’s how much I value Test cricket. And that’s how much I love Test cricket," Kohli said.

Russell didn't hold back when expressing his candid opinion, saying that playing for the West Indies is different from playing for other nations like India, Australia, and England, where players receive lucrative yearly contracts to play red-ball cricket.

“I think when you’re from India, Australia, England, those places where they look after their Test players, it’s totally different to being from West Indies,” says Russell. “Those guys get lucrative central contracts to play Test cricket and play on the biggest stages, of course they want to play. West Indians? You might play 50 or 100 Tests and you know, after you retire, there’s not much to show for it," Russell told The Guardian.

Although he hasn't formally retired from Test cricket, Andre Russell never had another chance to wear the whites for the West Indies after making his debut in 2010. The 37-year-old thinks his chances in the red-ball match were limited because Cricket West Indies predominantly saw him as a white-ball specialist. He maintains, nonetheless, that he has no regrets about the course of events.

“I was basically pushed out of the Test set-up. They saw me as more of a white-ball player and that was that. Would he trade some of those sixes and franchise wins for a longer crack at Test cricket? Honestly? No. I believe in Test cricket, but at the end of the day, I’m a professional. It wasn’t part of my journey. I have no regrets because it wasn’t me that turned my back," Russell said.