On May 12, the renowned Virat Kohli shocked his billions of fans worldwide by announcing his retirement from the longest format. Although he wasn’t enjoying himself in Test cricket, no one anticipated that he would leave his preferred format at the young age of thirty-six.
With his outstanding performance, Shubman Gill has replaced Kohli at number four in the batting order and is expected to end the five-match series as the series’ highest run scorer. In 10 innings, the 25-year-old scored 754 runs at an average of 75.40. Karun Nair and Sai Sudharsan, for example, have fallen short of their promise.
Shashi Tharoor, a Congress MP, stated that he is missing Kohli in the five-match Test series, particularly in the fifth and final match that is currently taking place at The Oval in London. On the challenging surface, the majority of Indian batsmen have unable to turn their beginnings into significant runs.
Tharoor thinks that if Kohli had been out in the middle, he may have changed things.
“This Test match has made me miss @imVkohli more than any other time in this series. A different result might have resulted from his perseverance and intensity, his motivating presence on the pitch, and his prodigious batting abilities. Can he be called out of retirement now? The country needs you, Virat! Tharoor posted on his official ‘X’ (formerly Twitter) account with the hashtag #INDvsENG.
I’ve been missing @imVkohli a few times during this series, but never as much as in this Test match. His grit and intensity, his inspirational presence in the field, not to mention his abundant batting skills, might have led to a different outcome. Is it too late to call him out…
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) August 3, 2025
On the last day of the fifth Test, India needs four wickets to win, while England needs another thirty-five runs. Intriguingly, the Three Lions are leading the series 1-2.
India
