“I will say one thing – how much time we have to watch and enjoy Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma bat, please let’s do it
because once they are done, we could hear talks like ‘oh, what a player he was! Please bring him back’. That doesn’t cut
ice for me. For however long they play, let us celebrate them as long as they are playing. As I said, life moves on very
fast. Time does not wait for anyone. It is very important that we realise that the time is less. So it is better that we
enjoy whatever they are doing,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel “Ash Ki Baat”.
One of the rumours circulating in the cricket circuit was about the possible return of Kohli to playing Test cricket
again. The 37-year-old was asked the question in the post-match press conference and made it clear he had no such
Ashwin said that when Kohli would have taken that decision to retire after putting in a lot of thought and it was unfair
to time and again question the decision.
“What is there to think? Whatever decision we take, it is well thought out. I am sure that when a player like Kohli
decided to retire from Tests, he was very clear. Nobody makes instinctive decisions. We have all crossed that road. As
audiences, as fans, we all want to see Virat Kohli.”
“The way he batted yesterday, fans are going to think. But Test cricket is a different kettle of fish, and he has made a
decision regarding that. Let us make one thing very clear. Whatever decision he has made, he has taken it. To keep going
back to that is not the right thing to do. A lot of players have come in, and the team has entered a transition as well.
It is about moving forward,” he said.