Ajit Agarkar Claims 'Virat Kohli is Past His Prime', Calls for Search for 'New Tendulkar and Dravid'; Gautam Gambhir to Play Key Role

The current scenario in Indian cricket is quite intriguing. With a disappointing loss in the recent home series and the Border-Gavaskar Trophy slipping away with a 3-1 defeat to Australia, the future of many players looks uncertain. There are talks about Rohit Sharma possibly bidding adieu to Test cricket, while Virat Kohli's career seems to be hanging by a thread as well. With India not scheduled to play any Test matches until their series against England in June, Kohli will need a miraculous turnaround in form to reclaim his status as the undisputed leader of the team.

Will he be able to, though? Former English cricketer David Lloyd's answer is a resounding no. The cricketer-turned-commentator is sure, more than anything in his life, that the best of Kohli is behind us. Following a terrible 2024, where Kohli managed just 414 runs at an average of 24-something, the former India captain is headed towards an interesting stage of his career. At 36, Kohli's place in the team is under immense scrutiny – perhaps more than ever – and Lloyd, in a straightforward message to the BCCI selection committee, has brought it up to its chairman Ajit Agarkar's notice that it's time.

"Virat Kohli knows he is past his best and that will hurt. When India come to England, you know where he's going to be. Just outside off stump, and the business area will be the slips. At 36 years of age, up in the mind, he knows what he should be doing. Your reflexes gently go. Ponting said he carried on a bit longer than he usually would have. The selectors should know. He is one of the greatest players we have seen but is past his best. The coach Gautam Gambhir will have an enormous say, a big say, because he has been in that dressing room. He has lost time. His time is over," Lloyd said on TalkSport.

"The one thing when you talk about great cricketers, that the rest haven't, is time. He has lost time. It's gone. His time's gone. It comes with age. Everyone tells you what you need to be doing. Stuff like 'leave the ball' watch it till the end. But it's gone. These are great international bowlers. If it's a repetitive way of getting out – in Test match you know there's going to be a bank of slips'. If you keep nicking off, it's a tell-tell sign for anybody that reflexes and reaction time is gone."

Should Virat Kohli bat at No. 4 if he goes to England? NO, says Lloyd

Lloyd also reckons that if Kohli makes the trip to England for the five-Test series, he shouldn't be batting at No. 4. But if Kohli's not India's man, then who? Shreyas Iyer has faded out of Tests, and KL Rahul is trying to cement himself as an opener if and once Rohit is done. Rishabh Pant seems to have found his calling at No. 5, and Shubman Gill is battling to survive at No.3.

With the Indian team entering transition, Lloyd has urged the BCCI's selection committee, led by Agarkar to invest more in the future and unearth talents that could take Indian cricket a long way into the future.

"When a team is in transition, they've got to find new players. That's what the selectors, the coaches, the captain – that's what you've got to do. They've got plenty of cricketers to choose from India and it's a great opportunity for the younger cricketers to make a mark. If I was involved, I would be stimulated by it. I might just find a new Dravid, a new Tendulkar or a new Ganguly because that's how they also came into the team," added Lloyd.

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