Kohli retired from T20Is in 2024 and shockingly called time on Test career in May 2025.
Legendary South African pacer Allan Donald says that he misses Virat Kohli playing Test cricket and stated that, like Proteas legend AB de Villiers, Kohli retired way too early.
Donald, who worked closely with Kohli as bowling coach for Royal Challengers Bangalore nearly a decade ago, spoke with unmistakable warmth about the former India captain, his hunger, his work ethic, and the vacuum his absence has created in the Test arena.
Throughout his illustrious career, Donald had several memorable duels with India's Sachin Tendulkar, fights that garnered the Proteas pacer uncommon appreciation from Indian fans.
While Tendulkar went on to become the sport's greatest batter, Donald has long maintained that Virat Kohli, fueled by an unrivaled hunger and work ethic, has the ability to go even higher.
“I said it a few years ago, when I was in a room with Hashim Amla, and I mentioned that if there was one batter who could even get close to Sachin, it would be Virat. He probably won’t get there, but Hash looked at me and said, ‘How can you say that?’ It’s just his hunger. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a player with that level of drive. I’ve got massive respect for him. I often talk about him in dressing rooms, especially about him being a champion trainer. There’s no one who trains as hard as Virat. He’s a machine," said Donald in an interview during the ongoing SA20 2026.
Virat Kohli was once primed to break the majority of records held by Sachin Tendulkar, which has fans salivating while following the career of the Delhi cricketer. However, after Virat Kohli retired from T20Is in 2024, he then, in a shocking decision, called time on his Test career in May 2025. This means ODIs remain the only format in which Virat Kohli continues to play.
Donald admitted he misses Kohli the Test batter and believes that, much like AB de Villiers, he called time on the format too early.
"I actually miss him. I miss watching him in Test cricket. It feels a bit like AB; you almost think he’s retired too early. But there’s no doubt we’ll see him again in white-ball cricket, especially at the World Cup, very soon," he added.
Kohli currently has 27,975 international runs, placing him third on the all-time list behind Tendulkar (34,357) and Kumar Sangakkara (28,016), while also trailing his idol by 16 international centuries.
Donald also made a plea to Virat Kohli, saying, “I would love to see Kohli play in the SA20 for one season. That would be amazing.”
(PTI inputs)