Analysis by chief cricket reporter Stephan Shemilt
And so cricket’s greatest showman leaves its grandest stage. Not with a final century, wave of the bat or guard of honour, but with a post to his 271m Instagram followers. The end of an aura.
It is hard to overstate Kohli’s fame, stardom or influence. He is the biggest presence in the most powerful cricketing nation on the planet. Maybe his name does not travel globally like a Ronaldo or Messi, yet even those two titans will have no idea what it feels like to be Virat Kohli in India.
As a batter, Kohli continued the talismanic lineage of Gavaskar, Azharuddin and Tendulkar. His cover drive is a work of art. In 2018, a Kohli net session in Adelaide went viral, the ball leaving the bat with sound of a pistol being fired. He is the first of the Fab Four to leave Test cricket and while his numbers do not stack up to Smith, Root and Williamson, Kohli is the most pleasing to watch.
As a leader, Kohli dragged the India Test side into the 21st Century. Having more Test wins than any other India captain is statistically significant, though that pales when compared to what Kohli did for his team and Test cricket itself.
It is not an exaggeration to say Kohli was the most important factor in upkeeping the relevance of the longest format when it could otherwise have been completely swallowed by the T20 leagues.
Kohli follows Rohit Sharma into retirement as the regeneration of the India Test team continues. The XI that lines up to face England at Headingley in late June will have an unfamiliar feel. There may be more one-day internationals to savour. In that format, Kohli really is the GOAT.
Even with the histrionics, everything he did was must-see. Without Kohli, Test cricket will be a poorer spectacle.
