Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli

NEW DELHI: India head coach Gautam Gambhir has finally broken his silence on the high-profile retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from Test cricket, calling it a personal choice and urging respect for their decisions.Speaking ahead of India’s five-Test tour of England, which begins on June 20 in Leeds, Gambhir addressed the vacuum left by the exit of two of India’s modern greats. Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!“I think when you start the game and when you want to finish, it’s a very individual decision,” Gambhir said in an interview with CNN-News18. “No one has the right — be it the coach, the selector, or anyone in this country — to tell someone when to retire. It comes from within.”Who’s that IPL player?Both Rohit and Kohli stepped away from the longest format earlier this month, ending a chapter of Indian cricket that spanned over a decade. Though Gambhir admitted the team would miss their experience, he emphasised the opportunity this moment presents for the younger players. “Yes, it will be tough, but then there’ll be people putting their hands up for sure,” he said. “Someone missing out might give another person an opportunity to do something special for the country.”

He cited India’s Champions Trophy win without Jasprit Bumrah as proof that the team can succeed despite the absence of senior names.

As per reports, the BCCI is expected to announce the Test squad and India’s new red-ball captain on Saturday, with Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar addressing the media.