Virat Kohli reveals real reason behind T20I retirement after IPL heroics: ‘New players needed time…’

Virat Kohli has opened up on the decision to retire from T20I cricket, despite him continuing to be good form and maintaining regular fitness levels. While answering a question about what changed for him coming in to this season of IPL after announcing his T20I retiremetn, to which Kohli responded saying that his decision to let go of the limited overs format was taken to give more chances to the younger players.

In an trailer of RCB Podcast's upcoming episode uploaded on X (formerly Twitter), Kohli told Mayanti Langer, "I don't think things have changed for me in any way. The decision (to retire fromT20Is) was taken purely understanding that there is a new set of players who are more than ready and they need time, they need a 2-year cycle to evolve, handle pressure, play in different parts of the world, and play enough games to the point where when the World Cup comes, they feel like they are ready,"

Virat Kohli lauds Mark Boucher: In the same interview, Kohli also praised former South Africa wicketkeeper-batsman Mark Boucher for giving him advice on how to get to the next level in terms of his cricketing career.

"Out of all players I played with initially, Boucher had the biggest impact on me. He figured out what my weaknesses could be, If I wanted to go to the next level, this is what I need to do, without me asking him anything. He told me that 'when I comes to commentate in India three-four years from now and I do not see you playing for India, you would do a disservice to yourself. So he really stunned me with the conversations he had with me," Kohli added.

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