The Virat Kohli void: How much did Team India miss the batter and the fire in 2025?

For more than a decade, after the fall of the second wicket, a familiar face would step inside the ground for India in Tests. The crowd would start chanting the name just after seeing the familiar walk down the stairs. Virat Kohli was the fulcrum of the Indian team -  not just for his batting, but for an aggression that set high standards and unsettled opponents. 

The confrontations made him special. But 2025 will end with the talisman playing just a single Test in Australia before ending his career in the format that he loves the most. A void that cannot be missed.

Without Kohli, the Indian team did not collapse on the field, but lost the edge that made them a real force in the World Test Championship over the last decade. The rivals were not able to relax as long as he was present.

After the retirement of Sachin Tendulkar in 2013, Kohli filled in the big boots with ease at the No. 4 slot in Tests. But despite holding an important position, the Delhi-born bettered his predecessor, scoring centuries at will.

Australian grounds are a difficult place to survive, even for the best. But the challenges enabled him to be on top of his game. He thrived on those conditions, scoring 1,542 runs, including seven centuries and four fifties at an average of 46.72. Even when he was in woeful form during his final series last year, Kohli scored a match-winning century at Perth in the first Test, four Tests before his end.

The 37-year-old Delhi batter met fire with fire on the field, and he saved his best for the Aussies, who are known for their sledging and getting under the rivals’ skin with their ultra-competitive approach. His supreme fitness helped him to walk the talk. Under his leadership, the India Test team rewrote the overseas record, winning 16 of the 36 Tests and a historic Test series win in Australia.

In 2014, the ace batter didn’t mince words when he said that he had no reason to respect anyone who didn’t regard him after an altercation with left-arm pacer Mitchell Johnson. He had scored two centuries in the Adelaide Test.

In 2017, Kohli accused Steve Smith of systematic cheating when the Australian sought dressing room guidance on the DRS. In the next year, he was engaged in a verbal duel with stand-in Australian skipper Tim Paine, who filled in the role after Smith and David Warner were banned for 12 months following the sandpapergate.

Kohli also had ongoing battles with James Anderson across multiple series. While he played the game hard, he also encouraged fans to applaud Smith during the 2019 World Cup in England after the Australian star had served his ban - showcasing true sportsmanship.

It wasn’t just his performance that mattered; Kohli also could bring out the best in his teammates. His famous motivational speech proved to be the turning point against England at Lord’s.

After Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami put on a crucial 89-run partnership that gave India a healthy lead of 272, Kohli declared at lunch. Before entering the field, the skipper, in one of the best pep talks in the history of cricket, pronounced it aloud, “For 60 overs, they should feel hell out there.”

Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj were able to respond to the war cry and reduced England to 90 for seven, before giving India a 151-run win.

“We thought with 60 overs to go, we could have a crack, and they were outstanding. A bit of tension on the field really motivated us to finish the game,” Kohli told the official broadcaster during the presentation ceremony.

“The belief and the desire are there to do the job for the team. To get a result in 60 overs is quite special. With someone like Siraj playing at Lord's for the first time and bowling as he did was outstanding. Second half of the day, we thought we were on top, and our fans got behind us. We feed off the energy of the crowd as well.”

The energy goes out of the Indian team when he is absent and returns when the chase master dons the national colours during the One-Day Internationals - the only format he is still playing in. When it is quiet, Kohli eggs on the fans to raise their support and feeds off their energy. There is no dull moment when he is around.

Former Indian opener Robin Uthappa, speaking on his YouTube channel, said that Kohli, along with Rohit Sharma, was forced to exit the Test arena. 

Kohli is a once-in-a-lifetime cricketer who doesn’t value the records or the adulations. The pure emotions on the field are irreplaceable. His game is all about emotions and can get under the skin of the rivals. 

Blowing a kiss to his wife, Anushka Sharma, after scoring a century or getting dismissed when the team needs him the most, he showed his real face to the world. Whether his exit is natural or forced, the Indian Test team misses the spark that keeps the live engine roaring.