BCCI Vice President Rajeev Shukla has cleared the air on the recent retirements of Indian cricket legends Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from the Test format, insisting that the Board never asked or pressured them to take the decision. speaking after a special meeting between the Indian men's and women's teams with UK King Charles III at St. James's Palace in London, Shukla stated that the retirement was entirely a personal call made by both players.

“They have retired themselves. We will always miss them; they are both great batsmen, and the good thing for us is that they are available for ODIs,” said Shukla in a conversation with ANI. “It is the policy of BCCI that we never tell any player to retire. We will always consider them as great batsmen,” he added, acknowledging the void left in the current squad during the ongoing five-match Test series against England.

While Rohit and Kohli’s presence is being sorely missed, the Indian teams had a memorable moment off the field when they met King Charles III at the royal palace. Captains Shubman Gill and Harmanpreet Kaur, along with team members and coaching staff, were in attendance. Shukla described the interaction as “historic” and noted that the King’s warm and informed engagement left a lasting impression on the players.

King Charles Asks About Akash Deep’s Sister, Siraj’s Dismissal

Shukla shared that King Charles had done remarkable “homework” before the meeting and surprised many with his attention to detail. “Players are very happy because he asked for all personal details of each player. He asked Saikia ji (BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia) and me about whether Arun Jaitley was my friend and what happened to him, and when I told him that he had died, he asked me to pay condolences to his family. He also asked about Akash Deep's sister's illness,” he revealed.

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#WATCH | London, UK | BCCI vice president Rajeev Shukla says, "...We are all feeling the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. The decision to retire made by Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli was their own. It is the policy of BCCI that we never tell any player to retire...We will… pic.twitter.com/4ShzHNG5W3

— ANI (@ANI) July 15, 2025

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In a short exchange with Shubman Gill, the King even brought up the final moments of India’s heartbreaking 22-run defeat in the third Test at Lord’s, highlighting Shoaib Bashir’s spinning delivery that bowled out Mohammed Siraj. Gill calmly responded, “It’s a game of cricket.”