Virat Kohli is one of the greatest Test batters that’s ever been: James Anderson

Former England bowler and commentator James Anderson has opened up on Virat Kohli’s retirement from Tests ahead of the England tour, starting on June 20. Anderson stated that Kohli retired from the game as one of the greatest Test batters.

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Moreover, he asserted that India has got a huge amount of talent in their domestic circuit to replace the batter of Virat Kohli’s stature. Notably, James Anderson and Virat Kohli’s rivalry was one of the battles to watch out for in England vs India Test matches.

“Great players. There will be a new captain because Sharma has retired. Kohli, one of the greatest Test batters that’s ever been. There’s big shoes to fill there but they’ve got a huge amount of talent in their squad,” said Anderson on TalkSport. 

“You just have to watch the IPL. They are bringing players into Test cricket from the IPL now who are just so attacking, aggressive, and fearless,” he added.

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Speaking about Kohli’s retirement, he made it public on Monday via an Instagram post, emerging as the fourth-highest run-scorer for Team India in the longest format of the game. Interestingly, his decision came right after Rohit Sharma’s decision to quit from this format.

While Kohli and Rohit retired just ahead of the England tour in the new World Test Championship cycle, Anderson feels England shouldn’t underestimate the opposition and start focusing more on the Ashes that is scheduled later this year.

“It’s a huge year with the Ashes coming but it is important to get some momentum going. If I’m being honest, looking back at my career, that happened too much where, 18 months out from an Ashes the management and even the players started to look towards that and actually forgetting what’s in front of you. India is going to be such a tough challenge even at home. They are a strong side,” Anderson concluded.

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