Virat Kohli's retirement is a huge loss to Test cricket but his announcement on Monday was not entirely surprising. Perhaps the microscopic attention "became too much" for the superstar towards the fag end of his career in the longest format.
Kohli was credited with single-handedly keeping Test cricket alive with his exceptional commitment to the format and now expect the 'dying' ODI cricket to regain relevance with the Indian superstar only available for that form of the game.
Though Kohli had an exciting challenge ahead of him in the five-Test series in England, the end seemed near for India's most successful Test captain.
In his retirement statement, Kohli insisted it was the right decision and he was walking away with no regrets and only a smile on his face.
Considering his exemplary fitness levels, on display in the IPL where he has shown remarkable consistency, Kohli could have easily carried on for at least one more season.
In a podcast with his IPL team Royal Challengers Bengaluru last week, Kohli gave an insight into his mind when asked about giving up India captaincy in T20s and Tests, something that may have been on his mind before Monday's shock announcement.
"At one point, it (attention) did become tough for me because there was just too much happening in my career. I was captaining India for a period of 7-8 years. I captained RCB for nine years. There were expectations on me from a batting perspective every game that I played," said Kohli on RCB Bold Diaries podcast.
"I didn't have this sense that the attention was off me. If it wasn't captaincy, it would be batting. I was exposed to it 24x7. It did get very tough on me, and it did get too much in the end."
Known to give his all every time he steps on the field, Kohli has realised over time that the game is just a part of his life.
With that mindset, he stepped down from captaincy, and even took a month's break in 2022. More recently, he moved to the UK to be away from the constant glare on his every move.
Even when is not in the best of forms, Kohli remains the biggest crowd puller in the game. He single-handedly lifted Test cricket out of doldrums.
He drew close to 15,000 fans to an otherwise neglected Ranji Trophy game that was witnessed in January this year. His 15-ball stay was enough to pull in the crowds for the majority of the game.
Kohli loved Test cricket but what the brought out the best in him was ODIs. With the next World Cup a couple of years away, his fans and the cricketing world would be hoping that he carries on at least till then.
He also spoke about training his mind to keep him going in a long career.
"I've tried this on a few occasions where I've been all over the place and then I would decide, you know what? I've scored these many runs and these many hundreds and I'm going to walk out thinking that -- but it makes no difference," he said.
"I've always told youngsters as well, it doesn't matter whether I've played 130 Test matches or 300 ODIs. If you've played two and your mindset is better than mine on the day, you will perform better than me on the day," he added.
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