Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara - BCCI criticised for botched farewell plans of Indian stalwarts

Veterans like Kohli, Rohit and Pujara deserved better farewell believes ex-cricketer. (Photo: BCCI)

The BCCI came under fire from former India captain Krishnamachari Srikkanth for failing to communicate Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma's Test retirements in a clear and concise manner. Since it was thought that Kohli and Rohit would be heading to England for the five-match Test series, their abrupt decisions in May shocked the cricket community.

They even followed the BCCI's instructions to play a Ranji Trophy match following the Australia tour, but Rohit Sharma abruptly announced his Test retirement on Instagram in the middle of the IPL. Virat Kohli announced the end of his Test career in a similar fashion just five days later.

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Former cricketers have begun to speculate about deeper, underlying reasons behind the abrupt departures of India's two modern greats, who did not play a farewell Test match. With Cheteshwar Pujara's recent retirement, the controversy has only gotten more heated, prompting further inquiries about why Indian icons aren't receiving fitting farewells.

Srikkanth expressed his dissatisfaction with the way Rohit and Kohli's retirements were handled, highlighting the need for open communication and a respectful send-off for players of their caliber.

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"If you play 100 Tests for your country, you must be a terrific cricketer. So you should be given a good send-off. I am convinced there was a big communication gap when Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma retired. They should have spoken to them, but instead, this is not a good look for the game and Indian cricket," Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel.

Srikkanth, a former BCCI top selector, emphasized that Kohli should have been given a better send-off because he still had at least two years of Test cricket left.

"Virat Kohli's retirement happened just like that. Virat Kohli deserved a better send-off. He still had two years of Test cricket left in him. But because we drew in England, such talks about him got shut off. However, India will find it difficult to get a cricketer like Virat Kohli for some time," he concluded.

Over the course of his 14-year, 123-match Test career, Kohli scored 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85.  Despite retiring 770 runs shy of reaching 10,000, Kohli solidified his reputation as one of India's finest Test batsmen with 30 hundreds, including seven double tons.

Rohit, meanwhile, concluded his career with 4,301 runs in 67 Test matches, an average of 40.57, and 12 hundreds despite having a difficult 2024–25 season. In March 2022, Rohit took over as captain from Kohli, leading India to 12 victories, 9 defeats, and 3 draws while amassing 1,254 runs.

Additionally, Srikkanth noted that Pujara departed without playing a farewell Test, and he said the BCCI ought to have collaborated with him to arrange a more appropriate send-off.

"Similarly with Pujara, though it's been a while since he played for India, they should have spoken to him also about his retirement plans. Of course, the player also has to cooperate and realise when their time is up. Had that happened, Pujara would have got a better send-off. But it's a matter of cooperation between the player, selectors and the BCCI," he added.