After naming India's first squad for the marquee Test series against England, Ajit Agarkar broke his silence on Virat Kohli's Test retirement. The chief selector explained the sequence of events that led to the shock retirement of India's most successful captain in the longest format of the game.

Putting speculation of the decision by Kohli being forced upon him, Agarkar claimed that it was Kohli, who reached out to the selectors and told him about his decision. The former Indian pacer stated that while Kohli will be hard to replace, he respected the decision that came from the player himself.

"When guys like that retire, it's always going to be big holes to fill. Even Ashwin retired a few months back. All those guys are stalwarts of Indian cricket. It’s always difficult. One way to look at it is that it's an opportunity for someone else. Obviously, I've had conversations with both of them over the last couple of months. Virat obviously reached out in early April and said he wants to finish

"We’ve seen him want to give 200 percent every ball that plays… even when he's not batting and in the field. He had given everything that he had and if he can’t keep up to the standards that he’s set for himself over the years and how good he has been, maybe it was time for him," said Agarkar in a press conference in Mumbai on Saturday (May 24).

The tour of England will mark a new era in Indian cricket as alongside Kohli, captain Rohit Sharma has also called time on his career. Ravichandran Ashwin also announced his retirement after the third Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) in December, which was India's last red-ball assignment.

Shubman Gill has been named as India's new Test captain and is likely to bat at number four, a spot vacated by Kohli. Rishabh Pant has been announced as the new vice-captain.

Karun Nair has earned a recall to the national team after a gap of seven years and with Kohli's retirement opening up a spot in the middle order, he could also be part of the playing XI.