Since India’s gritty triumph in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024–25, the national Test team has witnessed a wave of high-profile exits. First, Ravichandran Ashwin retired. Then, skipper Rohit Sharma bid farewell. And now, Virat Kohli, India’s most successful Test captain, has walked away from the red-ball format. Three giants of Indian cricket have exited in less than five months — raising serious questions: Is everything okay in the dressing room?
Amid this leadership vacuum, internal reshuffles continue to deepen the uncertainty. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has reportedly terminated assistant coach Abhishek Nayar’s contract, less than a year after his appointment. The decision follows a review of India’s underwhelming performance in Australia, where cracks in both team strategy and support staff planning were exposed.
Nayar, who was handpicked by Gautam Gambhir following Kolkata Knight Riders’ IPL 2024 title win, had been working closely with the batters. However, his role appeared to overlap with that of Sitanshu Kotak, the official batting coach. Alongside Nayar, fielding coach T Dilip and strength & conditioning coach Soham Desai have also been let go by the BCCI.
Though bowling coach Morne Morkel and assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate were also under review, they have reportedly retained the support of head coach Gambhir.
Interestingly, reports suggested Kohli had expressed a desire to lead the Test team again — possibly for the England tour. But the BCCI, eyeing the future, had already begun grooming Shubman Gill as a long-term leader for the next World Test Championship cycle. Kohli’s offer was not taken up, and not long after, he informed the board of his decision to retire from Tests.
While the BCCI says the decision rests solely with Kohli, the timing — along with Rohit and Ashwin’s exits, a shake-up in the coaching staff, and the board’s future-facing stance — suggests a deeper shift underway in Indian cricket.
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