Former Team India coach Ravi Shastri has revealed that Virat Kohli had spoken to him before making his retirement announcement from Tests public. Shastri said that he was surprised by Kohli's retirement. He said that this star batsman could have played 2-3 years more in this format. The former coach of Team India says that Kohli was mentally exhausted by the constant public commentary. Kohli announced his retirement from Test cricket on Monday. With this, his brilliant red ball career came to an end. He represented India in 123 Test matches, scoring 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85 and including 30 centuries.

Ravi Shastri revealed that he had spoken to Virat Kohli shortly before he made his retirement decision public. Shastri told ICC Review, 'I talked to him about this. I think his mind was very clear a week before he announced his retirement. He has no regrets. Virat surprised me because I thought he had at least three years left in Test cricket. But then, when you are mentally tired, that is what your body tells you. You can be the fittest person in the field physically.'

Shastri said, 'You can be fitter than more than half the players in your team, but if you are mentally tired, it sends a message to the body. You know.' Describing his conversation, Shastri said that Kohli's charming personality and constant headlines caused him to get 'burnout'. According to Shastri, 'He has received praise all over the world. He has more fans than any other cricketer in the last decade. Be it Australia, be it South Africa, he inspired people to watch the game.'

Virat Kohli led India to 40 wins in 68 Test matches, the most wins by any Indian captain so far. Shastri said, 'If he decides to do something, he gives his 100 percent, which is not easy to match.' Shastri, along with Kohli, formed the most successful coach-captain pair in Indian Test cricket history. He said, 'A player does his job, then you sit back. But (with Kohli) when the team is out, it seems like he has to take all the wickets, he has to take all the catches, he has to take all the decisions on the field. So much involvement, I think if he does not rest, then he is going to get burned out.'

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