If you want to earn respect in world cricket, take up Test cricket: Kohli

Kohli celebrated his first Indian Premier League (IPL) title with Royal Challengers Bengaluru after 18 years, calling it one of the best moments in his career

- Tridid Baparnash

Early a month after retiring from Test cricket, Virat Kohli opened up about his love for the longest format, while urging the next generation to pursue success in the red-ball format, even in a new era where white-ball cricket has claimed a bigger foothold in the game.

Rating Test cricket "five levels" above other formats, Kohli, whose 18-year wait with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) for an Indian Premier League (IPL) title finally ended Tuesday, said the IPL win would certainly go down as one of the highlights of his long career but it still remained below Test success.

"This moment (the IPL win) is right up there with the best moments I've had in my career, but it still marks five levels under Test cricket. That's how much I value Test cricket. That's how much I love Test cricket," the 36-year-old told the host broadcaster amid all the euphoria around RCB's six-run win over Punjab Kings in the IPL 2025 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.