India’s recent loss at home has left fans facing a harsh reality: their cricket heroes, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, may be nearing the end of their careers.
For nearly two decades, Kohli and Sharma have been central to India’s greatest cricket achievements, including three World Cup titles, two World Test Championship (WTC) finals, and a 12-year undefeated home test streak.
After winning the T20 World Cup in the West Indies earlier this year, both players retired from T20 internationals. Their recent struggles in test cricket are worrying fans ahead of India’s five-test series in Australia.
India hopes to avoid a clean sweep loss in the third test against New Zealand on Friday, with fans eagerly awaiting runs from Kohli and Sharma before they head to Australia.
Rohit, once a free-scoring opener and a key player in India’s historic series wins in Australia in 2018-19 and 2020-21, has scored below ten runs in six of his last eight test innings, with only one fifty.
Kohli, considered one of the modern greats, has hit only two centuries in the past five years and just two fifties in his last 12 innings in test matches. His batting average has dropped to 48.31, and he has struggled against left-arm spin, falling twice to New Zealand’s Mitchell Santner in the last match.
Former teammate Dinesh Karthik commented on Kohli’s recent test record, saying, “Virat’s performance against spin hasn’t been great in the last few years.” Karthik pointed out how Kohli seemed frustrated after being bowled out by a full toss from Santner in Pune, a delivery he would have handled easily in his prime.
“It’s a recurring pattern with left-arm spinners troubling him. He’ll need to work on finding solutions,” Karthik added. “He’s clearly looking for answers.”
India’s struggles go beyond Kohli and Rohit, as the entire batting lineup has faltered in both tests against New Zealand. India was bowled out for a dismal 46 runs in Bengaluru and only managed 146 in Pune. Their failure to build a strong first innings score made it difficult to stage a comeback in either match. With a slim lead over Australia in the WTC standings, a loss in the upcoming Mumbai test could mean India must win four out of five tests in Australia to secure a spot in their third straight WTC final.
The next few months will likely decide the future of Kohli, who turns 36 soon, and Rohit, who is a year older, in test cricket.
