Sanjay Bangar confessed that he tried to persuade Virat Kohli to retire from Test cricket, but the Indian star insisted that he had already decided.  On May 12, Kohli announced his retirement from the longest format of the game, having played 123 matches and amassing 9230 runs at an average of 46.85.

 Kohli scored 30 hundreds and 31 fifties over the period.  The Indian player had a close relationship with Bangar and even trained with the former India batting coach before the Champions Trophy.  Speaking on Match Centre Live on JioHotstar, Bangar said it was a sad day for him when Kohli announced his Test retirement and praised him as a legend of his time.

Although the star batter was certain of the time of his decision, the former cricket player believed that Kohli had a few more years of Test cricket remaining in him. According to Bangar, supporters should honor Kohli's decision.

"It was a sad day for me personally. He was a giant of his era. I tried to reason with him – there were still a few good years of Test cricket left in him. But he had made up his mind. He was convinced about the timing, and once he made that decision, there was no going back. We must respect that," said Bangar.

Bangar asserted that, as fans and commentators were questioning why Kohli ended his Test career and believed it was a sign of a great player, he made the right decision to retire.

“In our country, letting go is not always appreciated, but Virat chose the right moment. He retired when people were still asking ‘why now?’ – and that’s often the hallmark of a great sportsman," said Bangar.

With RCB’s IPL 2025 match against KKR getting washed out due to rain, Kohli will now be back on the field when RCB faces SRH on May 23.