The mind has told his body that it's time to go: Shastri on Kohli's Test retirement

Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has opened up about a conversation he had with Virat Kohli just a week before the star batter's unexpected retirement from Test cricket.

- STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE

While Shastri admitted he was "surprised" by the timing of the announcement, he said Kohli's words during their chat made it clear that the decision had been carefully thought out, and that the time was right for him to walk away from the format.

Kohli called curtains on his Test career on Monday ahead of India's five-Test tour of England, starting June 20. Kohli finishes as one of the finest Test batters of his generation, with 9230 runs in the format — the fourth-best by an Indian batter — and 30 Test centuries.

Kohli and Shastri formed one of the most successful captain-coach duos in Indian Test cricket history, and the latter has now confirmed reports that the star batter reached out to him ahead of announcing his decision to the world.

"I did speak to him about it, I think a week before [his announcement] and his mind was very clear that he'd given his everything," Shastri was quoted as saying by The ICC Review.

"There were no regrets. There were one or two questions I asked, and that's a personal conversation which, you know, he mentioned very clearly, there were no doubts in his mind, which made me think, 'Yes, the time is right'. The mind has told his body that it's time to go."