The stunning announcement of Virat Kohli’s retirement from Test cricket came on Tuesday, May 12. Co-owner of the Punjab Kings (PBKS), Preity Zinta, expressed her dismay at the news and her opinions about the star batter.

The star cricket player’s character is unmatched, according to the Bollywood actress. Test cricket would not be the same without the 36-year-old, she conceded, and she praised his competitiveness. Ravichandran Ashwin, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli had all put up their boots in the red-ball format, therefore she emphasised that the current Indian players will have large shoes to fill.

Mostly for Virat, I watched Test cricket. His drive to succeed and competitive nature brought a great deal of passion and character to the game. Test cricket will probably never be the same again. I’m hoping for the best for him in the future. In response to a fan’s query on her ‘X’ handle, Zinta said, “With players like Virat, Rohit, and Ashwin no longer playing Test cricket, our current Indian players will have big shoes to fill.”

I saw test cricket mainly for Virat. He infused so much passion and so much character into the game with his competitiveness & the desire to excel. I don’t think test cricket will ever be the same again. I wish him well and all the best for his future. Our current Indian players… https://t.co/XOkwATJtr7

— Preity G Zinta (@realpreityzinta) May 13, 2025

Virat Kohli’s Test career and the 2025 IPL return

With an outstanding average of 46.85, the Delhi-born batsman scored 9,230 runs in 123 Test matches, including 30 hundreds. His 40 victories in 68 Test matches as captain of Team India made him one of the greatest red-ball captains in history.

At the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024–2025, Kohli last played in whites against Australia. The five-match Test series saw him score 190 runs, including a century.

In the Indian Premier League’s 2025 season, the top-order batsman will play for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on May 17 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. He is presently ranked fourth in the Orange Cap race after scoring 505 runs in 11 innings.