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Tennis legend Novak Djokovic praised Virat Kohli's Test career after the Indian batter announced his retirement from the format. Kohli's decision came ahead of India's Test tour of England, marking the end of a remarkable 123-match journey.
Serbian tennis legend Novak Djokovic lauded Team India star batter Virat Kohli’s illustrious Test career after his retirement from the format. Kohli took to his Instagram handle to announce his decision to retire from the longest format of the game. The veteran Indian batter had already communicated to the BCCI about his willingness to retire from red-ball cricket before officially making the announcement public through a heartfelt post on social media.
Virat Kohli retired from Test cricket ahead of the India Test tour of England, which is slated to take place on June 20. The veteran Indian batter followed the footsteps of Rohit Sharma, who called it quits from the longest format of the game after he was removed from the captaincy duties. The board reportedly convinced Kohli to reconsider his decision to retire from Test, but the ace Indian batter was firm on his stance, eventually pulling the curtains on his Test career after 123 matches.
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Virat Kohli has been a cornerstone of India’s batting line-up in Tests, leading the team through a golden era with his aggression and leadership. Virat Kohli’s last appearance came in the Sydney Test, where he scored 17 and 6 in both innings. Kohli had a moderate outing with the bat in the Test series against Australia, scoring just 190 runs, including a century, at an average of 23.75 in nine innings.
Djokovic lauds Virat Kohli
As cricket fraternity lauded the contribution of Virat Kohli’s Test career, tennis great Novak Djokovic also joined in to show his appreciation for the Indian batting great. The former World No.1 shared Kohli’s retirement on his Instagram story and wrote, ‘Incredible innings’.
Novak Djokovic’s post went viral on social media as fans from both the cricket and tennis worlds celebrated the mutual respect between two sporting icons, highlighting Kohli’s global impact beyond the cricketing fraternity.
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Virat Kohli and Novak Djokovic haven’t met yet but the Serbian tennis legend revealed that he and the Indian batter have been texting each other for a few years.
“I have a great relationship with all the names that you mentioned and Virat Kohli and I have been texting a little bit for a few years.” Djokovic said ahead of the Australian Open last year.
"I admire Virat Kohli a lot. We haven't got an opportunity to meet each other yet, hopefully soon. But it's an absolute honour and privilege to speak and to listen to him," he added.
Virat Kohli on his relationship with Novak Djokovic
Last year, during the T20I series against Afghanistan, Virat Kohli opened up on his relationship with Novak Djokovic, while highlighting the mutual respect and admiration for each other.
"I got in touch with Novak organically on Instagram and sent him a message on DM. He messaged me himself and checked whether the account is fake or not. But, it was legitimate. We got talking and kept messaging each other every now and then." the 36-year-old said ahead of the 2nd T20I against Afghanistan in January last year.
"When I scored my 50th ODI century recently, he (Novak Djokovic) put out a story on Instagram with such nice messages. It's been mutual admiration and respect, and it's really nice to connect with global athletes who are selling at a high level." he added.
