New Delhi [India], May 18 : Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru head coach Sanjay Bangar "tried to reason" with stalwart Virat Kohli about his decision to retire from Test cricket, considering he still had "good years" left in him.
Just over a month before India's high-stakes tour of England, the 36-year-old batting maestro bid adieu to the Test format with a heartfelt note on Instagram, days after his long-time compatriot Rohit Sharma retired from the format.
It was a "sad day" for the former India batting coach, who has worked and monitored Virat's progress during their time together in the IPL and the Indian team.
According to Bangar, the Indian stalwart had made up his mind; he was convinced about the "timing" of it, and that there was "no going back" from his surprising decision.
"It was a sad day for me personally. He was a giant of his era. I tried to reason with him - there were still a few good years of Test cricket left in him. But he had made up his mind. He was convinced about the timing, and once he made that decision, there was no going back," Bangar said on JioHotstar.
"We must respect that. In our country, letting go is not always appreciated, but Virat chose the right moment. He retired when people were still asking 'why now?' - and that's often the hallmark of a great sportsman," he added.
Virat made his first appearance after stepping away from the Test format for Royal Challengers Bengaluru's clash against the Kolkata Knight Riders at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday. Fans turned up in whites to pay tribute to Virat's legendary career.
Virat's 14-year journey in the whites transformed India into a result-producing machine. He infused aggression and the culture of fitness into a team riddled with youth and experience.
In a career that redefined the demands of the game, Virat scored 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85, with 30 centuries and 31 fifties, and finished as India's fourth-highest run-getter in the format.
Virat's retirement from red-ball cricket marked the continuation of the exodus trend from the Test format in the Indian setup. Before the Indian batting bigwigs, the illustrious frontline off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin called it a day on his international career midway through the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.