London, July 9: For the first time since breaking the hearts of crores of Indians with his announcement of Test retirement, Virat Kohli has spoken of the topic in public. In a charity event for former India cricketer Yuvraj Singh’s foundation, YouWeCan, Kohli rubbed shoulders with some of the greats of the game, including his former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) teammate Chris Gayle. The entire cricket team, including head coach Gautam Gambhir, was in attendance at the event. The gathering also included stalwarts like Ravi Shastri, Sachin Tendulkar, Kevin Pietersen, Brian Lara, and Ashish Nehra.As the host Gaurav Kapoor invited Virat Kohli on the stage, he somehow managed to draw a reaction on Test retirement from the India great. Gaurav said that everyone misses Virat a lot on the field, this is when the India great broke his silence.
I just coloured my beard two days ago. You know it’s time when you are colouring your beard every four days,” said Kohli.
The bond that Kohli and his former head coach Ravi Shastri share isn’t hidden from anyone. On the occasion, Kohli once again thanked Shastri for the way he shielded him during the early days, helping him become the cricketer he went on to be.
Honestly, if I wasn’t working with him… what happened in Test cricket wouldn’t have been possible. The clarity which we had together is very hard to find. It’s everything for cricketers to grow in their careers. Even he hadn’t backed me the way he did… those press conferences where he took the bullets from the front line. Things would have been different and I always have respect and regard for him, for being a massive part of my cricketing journey,” Kohli said.