In a rare and heartfelt gesture, Virat Kohli received a tribute from the armed forces during a high-profile military briefing. On Monday, the Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs) from all three services held a joint media briefing on Operation Sindoor, which outlined India's coordinated military strikes on terror infrastructure across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).Amid the detailed briefing, Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai, the Indian Army’s DGMO, made a special mention of Kohli, who had earlier announced his retirement from Test cricket. Reflecting the emotions of many Indians, Lt Gen Ghai shared a personal note about the cricketing icon."I was watching Virat Kohli announce his retirement from Test cricket. Like many Indians, he is my favourite cricketer," he said.
He went on to draw a striking parallel between the sport and military operations: "Back in the 70s, during the famous Ashes series between Australia and England, two of Australia’s legendary fast bowlers—Jeff Thomson and Dennis Lillee—wreaked havoc on the English batting line-up. Their dominance was so overwhelming that the Australians came up with a saying: 'From ashes to ashes and from dust to dust, if Thommo don't get you, then Lillee surely must.' If you look closely at the layers, you’ll understand what I mean—even if you manage to get through all of them, one layer of this grid system is bound to catch you," he added.
Kohli, 36, drew curtains on a red-ball career that spanned over 14 years and 123 Tests. Debuting in June 2011 against the West Indies in Kingston, Kohli became the face of Indian Test cricket for more than a decade. Between 2010 and 2019, he emerged as the most prolific Indian batter, amassing 7202 runs at an average of 54.97, including 27 centuries, the highest in that period. However, his form saw a notable dip post-COVID, with just 2028 runs at 30.72—the lowest average among batters who scored 2000+ runs since 2020.Despite the recent slump, Kohli retires as India’s fourth-highest Test run-scorer, tallying 9230 runs at an average of 46.85, behind only Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, and Sunil Gavaskar. Kohli’s leadership legacy is equally monumental. Taking over from MS Dhoni in 2014, he captained India in 68 Tests, winning 40 matches, the most by any Indian Test captain. Internationally, only Graeme Smith (53), Ricky Ponting (48), and Steve Waugh (41) have achieved more victories as Test captains.
