India Test champion Virat Kohli announced his retirement from his favourite format and left everyone stunned with this unexpected decision, Following this announcement India batter Cheteshwar Pujara hailed Virat Kohli’s excellence in the Test format and his impact on Indian team’s fitness as well.
Cheteshwar Pujara Lauds Virat Kohli’s Fitness & Impact
Pujara highlighted on his strong legacy and the moment he was named the captain of India, Kohli emphasised on fitness and athleticism which completely evolved India’s Test team.
“When he started leading the team from 2015 onwards, that’s the time when he brought in the fitness culture in the Indian team. All the teams were trying to work hard on their fitness, but in the Indian team, the fitness had to improve and that was the time when the shift did come in,” Pujara said to ESPNCricinfo
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Virat Kohli’s Aim For India’s Test Team
“The number of fast bowlers who came into the Indian team at that time also had to work on their fitness. The entire team started working on the fitness and at the same time, Virat paid a lot of attention to the Test format and he wanted the team to be one of the best in the world,” he added.
“From the time he was in charge, he always wanted to take 20 wickets. So the intensity on the field was very important. And for each and every player to put in those suggestions to take those 20 wickets, it was important that everyone came together and then we started working towards the goal,” he added.
Virat Kohli Retires Before Reaching 10,000 Runs In Tests
At young age Virat expressed his dream to hit 10,000 Test runs, but this will now always remain unfulfilled as he retired just 770 runs before reaching that milestone. He ended his Test career with 9,230 runs in 123 matches and an average below than 50 in the last 5 years. Team India will be playing five match Test series against England starting from June 20 while India A team will play three 4-day practice matches starting from June 1.
