New Delhi, June 5 Former India head coach Greg Chappell believes Virat Kohli’s retirement from Test cricket is yet another reminder of how mindset instead of mechanics dictates a batter’s form in cricket.
Last month, Kohli announced his immediate retirement from Test cricket, where he had amassed 9,230 runs in 123 matches at an average of 46.85.
“Kohli, once the embodiment of intensity and technical assurance, recently stepped away from Test cricket. His decision was not born of diminished skill, but from the growing realisation that he could no longer summon the mental clarity that had once made him so formidable.
“He accepted that, at the highest level, unless the mind is sharp and decisive, the body falters. When doubt begins to settle in the bones, it disrupts decision-making, impairs footwork, and erodes the spontaneity essential to elite performance. Kohli's retirement is a reminder that form is more a function of the mind than it is of mechanics,” wrote Chappell in his column on ESPNCricinfo.
Chappell, who also played for Australia and served as their selector, further stated that in cricket, the sharpest decline amongst ageing batters is not in physical skill but in mental clarity of performing at their best, adding that if the mental clarity comes back, them few of them do perform well in the twilight of their playing careers.
“When instinct gives way to hesitation, and confidence turns into caution, it becomes clear that the first place to look is inward. This struggle has been well documented across generations. From Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting to Virat Kohli, Steven Smith and Joe Root, the most revered names in the game have grappled with the invisible weight of expectation and the creeping sense of decline.
“And yet, many of them have risen again - reminding us that while bodies age, the mind can be retrained, refocused and revived. The path back for older players is rarely through exhaustive technical reconstruction. Rather, it comes from returning to a state of mental clarity, rekindling the thinking of their younger days.
“This doesn't mean blind aggression or naïve optimism. It means remembering why they succeeded in the first place: trust, intent, and simplicity. The older one gets, the more mental fatigue takes its toll. Years of pressure, expectation and performance drain the brain's ability to focus sharply.
“Add the physical toll and it becomes easy to fall into a cautious, survival-first mindset. That's the trap. The greats who reinvent themselves - like Tendulkar in his second wind, or Sunil Gavaskar in his final flourish - are those who find a way to override the noise,” he concluded.
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